


Kindergarten Felon

by TaangyChocolate



Category: Batman - All Media Types, Teen Titans (Animated Series), Teen Titans - All Media Types
Genre: F/M, Single Parent AU, Teacher AU, kindergarten cop au
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-06-16
Updated: 2019-06-16
Packaged: 2020-05-12 16:29:49
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 25,162
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19232842
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TaangyChocolate/pseuds/TaangyChocolate
Summary: Day 1 of JayRae Week 2019: Single Parent AU





	Kindergarten Felon

_This was so fucking stupid._

He’d said it to Dick the _moment_ his older (and supposedly wiser) brother suggested it. Stupid didn’t even _begin_ to describe this plan. He grumbled as he tried to get comfortable, but it was useless. Lounging back in his seat the best he could, Jason mentally cursed airlines for never having any sufficient leg room. One of the more rough scars that littered his palm caught on the papers as Jason smoothed them out, looking over his directives again.

A guy named Slade Wilson. Went by _Deathstroke_ underground. Jason let out a curious little hum as he stared at the one-eyed man’s mug shot. If he hadn’t been a first-hand witness of how obsessed Dick could get with bringing this guy down, Jason would’ve thought this an elaborate test to check if he really was trustworthy. 

Shaking his head, green eyes went down to the case files, this one absent of all pictures. Not a single unique description laid for the three they absolutely knew of, but Jason wasn’t worrying too bad just yet. Dick had simply said the police force was trying to accomplish a discreet search to find a woman and the two kids that called Slade grandpa before anyone on the wrong side of the law could.

Apparently this _Deathstroke_ (Jason fought the urge to roll his eyes every single time he saw the kingpin’s self-given code name; _really_ , what was he? A comic book villain? This was _ridiculous_ ) was looking for his grandkids and the few million that his daughter-in-law had stole from him. Skipping over Dick’s neat handwriting, Jason ran a tongue over his teeth as he reread his role-to-be at Jump City Elementary. 

The oldest kid should be first grade, but the younger kindergartner was probably who Slade would be after first. Jason scratched at his forehead, irritated at the scent of dye and the fact that his odd patch of early graying hair was gone. 

This was possibly the _worst_ plan they ever could’ve thought up, but despite his complaints Jason was… excited at the prospects this mission opened up to him. 

Sure, the all-intensive training program where Dick _somehow_ got him approved to carry a gun despite his history was tedious. And the threats of having a tracking chip put under his skin seemed a bit much, but this was a chance for him to shed that ‘felon’ title once and for all. Bruce’s money only went so far (even though he _knew_ the commissioner allowed this little operation solely because of his donations) but _god_ , this whole situation reminded him of a dubiously written action movie. 

Jason rolled his neck and glanced at his watch; three more hours on this flight then he could grab his bags and his dog and finally sleep in an actual bed. But there was still a solid 15 hours until his final interview before surveillance could begin so Jason leaned back and hoped he could get some sleep.

A few rows back a baby started wailing and he let his eyes close, praying to every deity he could think of that his kindergarten class wouldn’t be too much to handle.

\--

Principal Beecher was an intimidating woman and even at his size Jason found himself fighting not to keep his gaze on his shoes. She might have been just a principal but she had the glare of a warden. A brow arched over her dark eyes as she sized him up, “Mr. Todd, mind explaining _why_ Gotham and Blüdhaven’s police departments are so keen on getting you in here?”

Jason didn’t even attempt to fake a cheery smile. As sincere as he could, olive eyes met hers, “I know the reason but I really can’t explain why, I’m sorry.”

The principal gave him a look that he couldn’t decipher; she obviously _understood_ , but was at least placated at his honesty. Sitting behind her desk, brown fingers laced atop a folder. Her shoulders straightened and her lips quirked into a line, “Mr. Todd… Peter, if I may?”

Jason stiffly nodded, “Peter is fine.”

“Peter, do you know what the job description of an educator is?” Chocolate brown eyes bore into his very soul, intense and protective, “Yet alone one for early childhood?”

Dick had practically drilled the guidelines into him as they were getting everything together, but Jason still hesitated half a second before reciting, “Finding age appropriate programs to meet each child’s and the whole class’ needs, at the very least to the state and federal minimums. Most importantly I need to keep the children and their environment as well adapted to learning and safe as possi--”

Beecher held up a finger, meeting his stare dead on as she interrupted, “That’s it. A _safe_ environment.”

She stood and walked to the other side of her desk and half-sat on the corner. “You’re not just being recommended, but _forced_ here by two different police departments. Now tell me, Peter, would you let your kindergartner go to school at a precinct?”

Jason shrugged a shoulder and folded his hands on his lap, fighting the urge to fiddle with his scars, “I wouldn’t. From what I’ve seen they’re pretty busy places.”

Principal Beecher nodded, “Not only are they busy, but they can be _dangerous_. And I will not let my kids have even a sniff of _danger_ in a place where they should be learning, understood?” She stood and aimed a stern look down her nose at him, but Jason felt a lightness in his chest at the lack of anger in her eyes. 

Realizing he hadn’t answered her question, the man looked up into her face, “Understood, ma’am.”

Her head tilted as she took in what emotions she could pick out on his face and dark lips split into a smile despite the tension still in her shoulders. She motioned for him to stand and follow her. Olive eyes scanned the school as they strolled past, glad that class was in session so he could be somewhat covert. Handmade pictures were framed along the room doors and a few certificates and trophies were displayed right in front of the main entrance. One staircase, but what looked to be plenty of room to maneuver if any kidnapping attempts were made. 

Jason pursed his lips at the idea (and tried not to smile at what Dick would have thought of him being so sleuthy) and let Principal Beecher lead him down two hallways before he spoke up, “Kindergarten’s way in the back, huh?”

Humming, Beecher raised her chin, “You’ll be in room 7. It overlooks the playground so recess is just opening the back door and letting them go crazy.”

She slowed her steps to glance up into his face. Something unreadable passed over her face but it was gone before Jason could figure it out, “Mrs. Roth will be right across the hall if you need anything. She’s our music teacher.”

“Yeah?”

Her stare went back to the hallway in front of them, pride creeping into her voice, “And our substitute math teacher _and_ the head of HR.”

His brows jumped, “Must be quite the educator.”

“Yes, she is.” The principal didn’t fight back her smile at the thought of one of her most crucial advisors, but she shook her head and resumed her pointers, “Plus the fifth graders practice for the semester plays out in the courtyard. Your class will like having the distraction right before naptime.”

“Good to know…” Jason’s words trailed off as they rounded onto room 7. Across the hall he heard who he supposed must have been Mrs. Roth, but her voice was drowned out by the muffled screaming of unsupervised children. Sighing at the sound of chaos, Principal Beecher gave him a look and a chuckle, “Give me a second to calm them down.”

Jason nodded and stayed outside, fidgeting as she flicked the lights on and off. He smoothed out his blazer and rolled his shoulders, letting the air out of his lungs as a “You’ll have a substitute for a while…” slipped through the walls. Cracking his neck, the felon tried his best to shake off his nerves. Closing his eyes he reminded himself that they were _children_ and he was the adult, he was more than capable. 

“Meet Mr. Todd,” Grabbing the handle, a reluctant smile plastered his face and he walked in. Twenty-five necks craned up to stare at his face and fifty bright eyes went wide. 

“Morning kids,” Jason felt Dick’s voice in the back of his head, _you can do this_. He fought back a snicker at the idea of the detective on his shoulder and nodded at the principal as she slipped out of the room, “I’m glad to finally meet you all.”

\--

He got ten minutes of order. 

That was plenty enough time to go around the class and find out each of their names, but not nearly enough time to find out anything substantial. Jason made the mistake of telling them to get comfy on the carpet before spelling practice, but that meant _toys_ and toys meant _chaos_.

Running around like a headless chicken Jason tried to calm them all down, but crayons were being wielded and stuffed animals were being flung every which way. A pigtailed girl was showing three others how to fingerpaint the chalkboard, a boy in a polka-dotted long sleeve was licking a questionable stain on the bottom of one of the desks, a kid with an atrocious bowlcut-fade combo was smearing his applesauce into a heart-eyed smiley face on the windows, a quartet of girls were swinging their shoes above their heads by the velcro straps and doing their best attempt at yodeling, a blond boy with a makeshift cape had somehow found a way to accidentally rip off the stuffed stegosaurus’ head and was now crying at an ear shattering decibel. 

Screaming was _everywhere_. Screaming was _everything_.

Jason ran a hand through his hair, too occupied with stopping the twins with matching math t-shirts from eating anymore glitter glue to worry whether or not he’d pulled too many strands out. A curly-haired boy let out a maniacal giggle as he spun around and _launched_ the teacher’s edition textbook into the air. His bright brown eyes widened and he covered his mouth as the hardback hit the teacher’s thigh; Mr. Todd went down like a beanstalk and the swarm of kids migrated towards the toy shelves, caking their hands in chalk and leaving tiny handprints all over the shelves. 

Clutching his head and shaking his leg in a feeble attempt to stretch out the pain of the unexpected charlie horse, Jason let out a groan from the floor, “QUIET!” 

When the anarchy didn’t stop, he rose up on unsteady legs, his voice louder but not a yell --never a yell, “QUIET!!”

Some of the kids noticed but went back to their toys so he clapped his hands once, punctuating the loud _boom!_ with a firm, pained “ _QUIET!!!_ ”

Whatever hope that bloomed in his chest at the immediate few blissful seconds of silence gave way to horror as a sniffle filled the air. Then another, then another. Then a full-blown sob from the cape kid and suddenly all of room 7 was a mess of snot and tears. 

Jason was an adult. Theoretically, he knew what to do. He just had to calm them down and start the lesson. In reality, he was lost to the point that gps was giving up on him so, flustered beyond sanity, the teacher ran to the door, stuttered out a quick shout of “Wait there!” and sprinted out as fast as his legs could take him. 

Watching over a mass of children was an absolute nightmare and Dick was an absolute _idiot_. 

But he could still do this.

“Godfuckingdammit, godfuckingdammit, god _fucking_ dammit…” His leg still hurt and he was in awe that he just left them all alone and sobbing. But his bolt for the front doors was uninterrupted and, running up the hill to where his car was parked, Jason didn’t even bother cursing the fact that he left his keys in the classroom. He took out his wallet and the pile of bobby pins he always kept to pick the lock. Huffing, Jason pulled a bag of biscuits from his trunk and hurried back towards the school, skidding in front of the tree where his dog casually watched him. The mutt’s ears perked up and he jumped to his feet as Jason crouched next to him. His tail started to wag as the felon unknotted the leash from the tree trunk and adjusted the collar, “C’mon boy, time for you to earn some treats.”

Tiptoeing to stay out of the front office’s view, Jason cradled the canine, his water bowl and the box of treats in his arms as he jogged back to class. Room 7 went silent as he nudged the door open with his hip, the dog still comfortably relaxing in his grasp. Twenty five pairs of hands immediately stopped making a mess and at the attention he lifted his pet an inch, announcing to the room, “This is Sparky the Second.”

He dropped the water bowl and box of treats on one of the paint-covered tables, a huff leaving him when Sparky’s tail began to wag at the sight of the kids shuffling closer. Stifling a smile, the new teacher knelt down and let the dog get used to the feel of carpet under his paws. Jason scratched between his not-so-floppy ears and waved his curious students closer, “He’s gonna be our class mascot, alright?”

He held up a finger, “But everyone needs to be calm before petting him. He’s tough but that doesn’t mean we have to be rough, understood?”

One of the twins sneezed and his heart froze; he didn’t even _think_ to check if anyone was allergic. But he just wiped the feathers away from his face (feathers from the torn apart pillows that he’d have to clean up later) and inched closer to try to pet the dog. Jason let himself relax, a soft laugh escaping him as the kindergartners _calmly_ gathered around.

Miss Stuffy Nose with a half-empty pack of tissues in her overalls --Lian, he mentally screamed. He was their _teacher_ , he had to remember their actual names-- stumbled up to him and tugged on his jacket, “Mister Toooodd?”

She was practically using his sleeve as a makeshift swing and he bit back a smile, “Yes?”

Lian pouted, exasperated, “I need to go to the bathroom!”

His smile vanished. Jason nodded once and unclicked Sparky’s leash, frantic as he tried to remember whether or not he saw if room 8 was still occupied when he’d run off. He patted Lian’s head and muttered, “Okay. Just… wait there and I’ll be right back.”

The sound of poorly played recorders rang through the thin walls and he jogged to the opposite classroom. He paused at the sight of Mrs. Roth, his brows jumping appreciatively, but his gratefulness at the full room urged him to try to catch her eye. 

Jason waved through the window. When she didn't notice he sheepishly tapped on the glass, relieved when he got the teacher's (and most of her students’) attention. She looked up, the glasses on her face tilting in surprise before she held up a hand and passed off the conductor role to one of her students. Jason tried to keep the awkward smile away as the three kids jamming on the triangles gaped at him through the window, but then Mrs. Roth came out and he could somewhat relax. 

She had to crane her head up just to see into his face and spoke first, an undercurrent of amusement in her voice, "First day going well, Mr. Todd?"

He realized he must have been covered in chalk and dog fur and who knew what else. But he was tired and Jason could only let out a laughing sort of sigh, “Kinda. Uh, Principal Beecher said to come to you for any help?”

The music teacher perked up at the news, her brows furrowing, “I’m the one. What did you need?”

Before he could speak the door opened and Lian let out a whine as she waltzed through. Unaffected by the two teachers looking at her, she wriggled her shoulders, crossed her legs and rested her cheek against the lockers as her voice raised a pitch, “Misteeer Tooooooodd!!! I really need to go…”

Recognition filled the woman’s face and she patted Jason’s arm with a quiet laugh, "Oh, I'll take her. It’ll only be a few minutes." Lian let out a relieved mumble as Raven grabbed her hand and began leading her to the bathroom, "Come on, Sweetheart." 

When Jason didn’t move Raven tilted her chin towards room 7’s door. A tiny curl came on her lips, so slight it couldn’t _really_ be thought of as a smile, but her gray eyes were warm enough as she advised, “Keep your eye on them. There’s a wholesale tub of glitter in the teacher’s desk but locks aren’t much compared to kids.”

Her words seemed to shake him back into the present and he aimed a confident, grateful grin her way. Cape boy bound up to him the moment he walked in, his lower lip quivering as he held up the ends of his blanket. Jason knelt down, “Timmy?”

Bright blue eyes were watery and snot was threatening to fall as he showcased the ends of his baby blanket, “MY CAPE!!!!”

“I gotcha…” Jason carefully tied the worn ends into a knot below the boy’s chin. Timmy giggled as he spun around, satisfied when the material fluttered behind him just right. “All set little dude,” He ruffled the kid’s hair and sent him off, his body sagging as he took in the sheer scope of mess around him. But his grin stayed steady, especially as Mrs. Roth and Lian returned. 

A thick brow rose at the sight of a dog but the music teacher only chuckled, her lips not quite smiling but not quite stoic as she gazed at him, “You got them all calm. Congrats, that's _quite_ a feat.”

Her words were obviously sincere but Jason still faltered when Timmy bounded up to her and hugged her legs. His scream of “HI MOMMA!” was muffled by her pants and Raven ran her fingers through his hair once, smoothing it down. 

Gray eyes rose to meet Jason’s stare, “My class is going to the courtyard in a few minutes. Just open the side door if you need me.” She glanced down and winked at her son, “Keep being good for Mr. Todd, alright?”

Timmy nodded and Jason couldn’t help but wonder if he had any siblings. 

\--

Raven hadn’t known what to make of him at first. 

As the head of HR she knew that hiring such a scar-covered, rough looking man to be a kindergarten teacher, let alone one who was being referenced by a police department on the other side of the country, was outrageously risky. But _something_ about him spoke to his kindness and principal Beecher obviously held the same ideas when they immediately scheduled him for full-time. Apparently his interview must’ve gone well so she wasn’t worried _too_ much; in less than a day each and every one of her schoolkids had practically fallen over for him. And as soon as the 3 o’clock bell rung and she’d picked up her toddler from the school’s daycare, the children she brought home with her also spent the car ride back to their apartment gushing over how nice and kind and _strong_ Mr. Todd was. 

Raven couldn’t keep the smile from her face as they spent the whole drive chattering about the newest member to Jump Elementary’s staff. Melvin bemoaned from her carseat, “Lian said he _launched_ her into the ballpit when she said please.” 

She pouted as her brother hugged his blanket to his cheeks and giggled out, “And when we had playtime outside he tossed me so high up, Momma! It was great!”

The teacher smiled and shook her head, amused as she turned onto their apartment’s street, “I’m guessing you haven’t gotten a chance to meet him yet, Mel?”

Melvin pouted even harder, “Not yet.”

Raven caught her daughter’s eye through the rearview mirror, “You know, a little birdie tells me he’s gonna be on big-kid recess duty most of the semester.” She parked the car to the sound of her kids’ simultaneous gasps, her chuckle becoming a sigh as she stepped out and stretched. Sticking a tongue out at the eight classes’ worth of homework she would have to grade and the piano sheet music she’d have to tweak the mistakes out of, Raven strolled to the backseat and unbuckled her horde. 

Melvin and Timmy burst out as soon as they were free, skipping as they balanced their backpacks against their knees and spun around at the news. Wrapping his blanket around his shoulders like a cape, the boy let out a curious cry, “MOMMA!” 

Raven balanced Teether on her hip, wincing at how loud her son was, “I’m not that far away from you, Sweetpea.” 

The baby spat out his pacifier and waved his feet in the air at his siblings’ rowdiness, babbling as he grabbed at the loose strands of her hair. Timmy impatiently tugged on her pants and she handed him the keys. As he unlocked the door Melvin helped her balance the baby bag on her hip and Raven’s gaze flicked to the clock as they stumbled in, her brows jumping, “Oh, we got home a bit early.” 

Pulling her hair from its tight knot, Raven cradled her youngest to her chest as she slid out of her shoes and plopped down on the couch. Her hands were already cramping at the idea of having to grade all those worksheets, but the sounds of her kids getting settled was relaxing enough. Teether patted at her mouth and when she opened her eyes he gave her a no-longer gummy smile. A laugh escaped him as she kissed his nose. 

Timmy crawled into her lap and she pecked his temple. He aimed bright, deceptively and yet sincerely innocent blue eyes her way, “Momma?” 

Raven _knew_ that look. She held up a finger before the word ‘cookie’ could even slip out of him, “You each get a snack, but go get changed first. We need to get some groceries.” Timmy brightened up at the idea and he tried to stand, bursting into a fit of giggles as she poked his stomach. Raven laughed with him, “I’ve gotta get some _actual_ food in my baby boy.” 

Melvin’s steps thundered on the carpet as she skidded on her socks to peek over the couch, “Can we have pasghetti?”

The blonde held out her teddy bear and Raven nodded, kissing the stuffed animal’s foot and then her daughter’s wrist as she sing-songed, “If you can get me a pen and paper for our list, I can even make us some garlic bread too.”

Timmy gasped and he sprinted to the kitchen as fast as his short legs could take him. Melvin bounded over the couch’s arm after him, her laughter filling the room. Bobby was held tight in her grasp, his plastic eyes bugging almost as wide as the girl’s as she easily ripped a page out of one of the notebooks in her backpack. Her pigtails bounced as she skipped back to her mother, “Can it be the cheesy kind?!”

Raven let out a laughing sort of sigh as Timmy bumbled after her, the pencil case of gel pens in his grasp. He rubbed at his watering eyes and stuck a tongue out as Melvin tried to take his spot on Momma’s lap. Raven cleared her throat and sat cross-legged on the cushions, expertly stopping the tantrum before it could start; taking her invitation, Timmy curled against one side and Melvin the other. 

Finding her favorite blue pen, Raven clicked it open and started her list. She leaned back to cradle the baby better and read as she wrote out what they needed for dinner first, “Spaghetti noodles, tomato sauce, ground beef, garlic bread--”

Melvin tried to whisper to her brother, “D’you think Mr. Todd likes the cheesy kind?”

Raven smiled as she kept writing, wondering for not the first time how her children ended up so _loud_. She shifted to make Timmy more comfortable as he nodded, his whisper as unquiet as his sister’s, “He looks like he does!”

\--

The market wasn’t filled with too many people, just as Raven liked it. She easily buckled the car seat attachment onto the cart and pulled the list from her pocket. “Hold onto the cart you two,” She called out to her kids. 

Melvin aimed her big blue eyes up at her, “Can I push?”

Raven strolled in front of the cart, looking down into her list as she picked up a loaf of bread. “Just don’t run into anyone, alright?” Melvin and Timmy pushed the handles as they followed her and gasped as they caught sight of their teacher coming around the corner. Their mother didn’t. So caught up in crossing off the items, Raven let out a little jump as she practically ran into his chest. 

Her pale cheeks flushed as her kids burst into a fit of giggles and Raven straightened her back, “Oh! Mr. Todd.”

His brows rose and his fingers instinctively twitched at the surprise hit, relaxing almost immediately after. Jason forced a smile half a second later, looking surprised as he tilted his head down respectfully at her. They both took a step back, getting out of each other’s personal space as he greeted, “Mrs. Roth.”

“Miss,” She immediately, instinctively corrected him. His eyes flicked to her ring finger as she rubbed at the tanline that’d yet to have a chance to recede, but he didn’t comment and she internally thanked him for it. Pale fingers tucked away her grocery list, “But we aren’t at school and I’m pretty sure I’m not _that_ much older than you.”

Her teasing led to another one of her little smiles, “Rachel is fine.”

His grinned back, some of the tension leaving his shoulders as he offered, “You can call me Jason, then.”

Almost immediately that tension came back at his misstep, but Raven didn’t say anything. Jason knew that it wasn’t because she didn’t _notice_ , but because she was willingly deciding not to question why his resume said Peter. Before he could blurt out an excuse or they could properly size each other up her two oldest flocked to his sides and Raven knew she wouldn’t be able to grab them in time. Shaking the oddness away her apology immediately started, “We don’t mean to bother--”

“I’m Melvin!” The girl beamed up at him as her brother butted in, “You already know I’m Timmy!” Melvin pointed at the stroller-cart’s occupant, her pigtails bouncing at the move, “And he’s Teether!”

Jason raised a brow, amused as he glanced at his fellow teacher’s way, “Teether?”

Raven let out a chuckle as she patted her youngest’s head, “Junior is teething. It’s a little nickname they’ve given him.”

"We used to call him Cougher," Melvin piped up from his side. 

"Yeah?"

"Mmhmm!" The girl gave an exaggerated nod, but with her energy level it was probably sincere, "When we first moved here there was a biiiiig fire." Timmy joined in as he carefully placed the cylinder of breadcrumbs on the frozen garlic bread box, "Everything was so smoky! Momma and all our teachers got really worried."

“Well it’s not smoky now,” Raspy as it was, Raven’s voice was _just_ deep enough to wash over her hyper kids and gather their attention. She pointed down the store to where the colorful wrappers reflected onto the floor, giving the speckled tiles a retro vibe, “It’s so clear that I can see the rest of the aisle from here. Make sure you stay in sight and go get some snacks that’ll last us a week.”

Melvin giggled as she took off but Timmy hesitated, waiting until Raven double-checked the knot of his blanket-turned-cape to chase after his sister. Jason felt his lips smile at the carefree grin on her face as she watched her kids go. Her grin didn’t waver as she pulled out a gorilla-shaped pacifier from her baby bag and offered it to Teether as he started to doze off. 

The baby yawned and she popped it into his mouth, expertly adjusting him in his stroller, “Come on, Junior.”

Jason glanced at the baby from over her shoulder, softly smiling as the toddler half-heartedly waved at him. He took in the two, one so effortlessly maternal and the other already falling asleep and he had to ask, “Junior?”

She turned to him, startled. His eyes went back to her finger and Raven winced. Jason ducked his head, “Sorry, I didn’t mean to--”

“It’s fine.”

Immediately Raven was back to checking the labels of the jars in front of them. They stood next to each other for a moment and her shoulders went slack with appreciation when he didn’t speak. But emerald eyes kept glancing at her and she sighed, “You can ask, Jason.”

He tried to bite back his curiosity, but failed, “Divorced?”

She opened her mouth then hesitated. Her brows furrowed and she shook her head, “Somewhat, but not quite. Widowed.”

He tried to hide his widening eyes with a cough, rubbing the back of his neck as Raven turned to him. She kept an eye on her two oldest and let her youngest sleepily play with her fingers as she shrugged, “Yeah.” A humorless chuckle escaped the woman and she rested an elbow on the shelves, smiling down at Teether, “When I was still pregnant with this beautiful little bundle.”

“Were you in Jump?” Her gray eyes suspiciously settled on his face and he hastened to think up a believable enough lie that hopefully wouldn’t bite him in the ass, “Principal Beecher mentioned that you were somewhat new here too…”

Raven nodded slowly and gave him a wry smile, “I decided we needed a fresh start, y'know? Pretty common with a city as busy as Jump.” She shrugged a shoulder and brushed back some of the baby’s blond curls, “At least the kids love it here."

"And you?"

"Me?" Raven hummed and looked down at herself, as if she'd never really given her own thoughts on the matter a moment's notice before. Gray eyes flicked up to him, "I’m… actually quite fond of this city.”

“Yeah?”

“Mmhmm. It’s busy but it’s _quiet_ , you know?” Raven nodded at her own question and looked up into his face again, rubbing at her arm, “Only Karen-- Principal Beecher. She’s the only one that knows that I wasn’t _just_ divorced.”

Jason felt a flutter of hope fill his chest. The feeling was immediately followed by disgust that he really just tried to _justify_ his unnamed attraction to her and he cleared his throat, worried that she’d spot the thoughts on his face, “So you two were already--”

Raven cut him off, “Separated. There were… issues with my father-in-law that he fed into.”

He could tell she was getting uncomfortable, but he lightly pressed on. Jason lifted his head, “Mr. Roth wasn’t very nice, I take it?”

Raven’s shoulders shook and that tiny whisper of a smile was back, “Well he wasn’t either, but Roth’s my maiden name.” 

Timmy skipped up to them before Jason could press again, tears in his bright eyes as he held his blanket’s edges in his hands. Raven smiled as she bent to tie them back in a knot over his collar, fixing his cape back in place. She pecked his hairline and watched as he bounded off down the aisle where the cookies were kept. 

Melvin handed her a jar of marshmallow fluff, holding her chin up and letting out a giggle as Raven smooched her forehead. The girl made sure that they were keeping the treat and then ran after her brother, Bobby still firmly in her grasp. Raven watched them go and stood up to her full height, guiltily glancing up at Jason’s face, “Sorry for unloading all that on you.”

Jason shrugged a shoulder, “I get it.”

She bit her lower lip and watched as he watched her roll it between her teeth. Sighing, Raven pointed to the top shelf, “Could you also get me one of those mini pickle jars?” 

Admittedly, the mother didn’t know _how_ to continue this conversation, let alone if she _should_. But as his warm hands brushed against hers, a stark contrast from the chilly glass that held her pickles, the music teacher had to admit, “You’re just remarkably easy to confess to. But that was unprofessional, my apologies.”

Jason tilted his head to stare at her and she met his gaze. They didn’t say anything for an impossibly long second, then Timmy’s screech of “LOOK AT ALL THESE OREOS!!!” shook them out of their short-lived stupor. A tense chuckle forced its way out of him as he remembered exactly _why_ he was in Jump in the first place. Jason took a half step back, “It’s fine Miss Roth.” 

He paused at his slip, “I mean Rachel.”

Gray eyes went to the jar in her hand as she read the ingredients. She didn’t turn _away_ from him, but she faced the shelves as she rolled her jaw. After a few indecisive seconds she spoke a single word, “Raven.”

His eyes snapped to her face but she didn’t look away from the pickles’ labeling. That half-smile widened as she chanced a secretive glimpse at his face from her peripheral, “I figure if you’re not keeping up with this false identity business, I shouldn’t either.”

Jason slowly nodded, his heart dropping to his stomach, “Raven, then.”

His phone vibrated and a quiet curse fell from his lips; it must have been Dick’s 4 o’clock check-in. Raven’s brows jumped at the colorful word that escaped him but she let out a snicker, putting on her sternest ‘teacher’ voice, “You better not say stuff like that in class.”

He bit back a smile, “Never, but I have to go soon.”

Raven softened at the genuine regret on his face and she placed a hand on his arm. Jason heard the kids’ skipping footsteps further down the aisle, but all his attention was on the short woman in front of him. “We kept you, I know,” Raven hummed as she grabbed her daughter’s hand and felt Timmy hug her legs, “Still, it was nice seeing you like this. You’ll be chaperoning the field trip tomorrow, right?”

“Of course. You’ll be joining me?” 

A tiny smile and an even tinier nod was his answer, “Hope you like keeping 6 year olds from eating museum gift shop slime all day.” 

Timmy let out a curious little sound at his mother’s words and Jason laughed, “That bad?”

He tried to ignore how quickly he was _really_ taking a liking to this woman. Raven’s lips threatened to smile up at him as she easily plucked the fruit snack wrapper from Melvin’s hands before it could find its way into her mouth, “They’re grubby little angels, but you get used to it.” 

\--

Uncapping the bottle of whisky that he probably shouldn’t have brought along, Jason plopped on the couch. His head fell back as he took a swig, uncaring at the small blast of cool air when the freezer door didn’t shut properly, slowly swinging back open. His eyes opened to look at the clock, _8:29_. 

He ran a tongue over his teeth and sighed, reaching for the phone as the clock ticked half past. Jason took another swig as the phone rang for four rings, then his brother picked up. He ran a hand through his hair, not bothering with their usual banter, “Dick.”

The police officer’s smile was obvious in his voice, “Glad you called. How’s everything going, Jay?”

The ex-criminal let out another rough sigh and listened to the bustle of the precinct beyond the phone. Dick waited for him to start, taking a sip of coffee and nearly choking as his brother asked, “Is there any way I could stay after all of this?”

“Stay _there?_ ”

Green eyes closed at Dick’s incredulity. Jason thought of his recent trip to the grocery store and scratched at his nape, “Here.” 

He could hear the sound of his brother leaning back in his seat, “Is Jump _that_ nice?”

Jason rolled his eyes at the question in the detective’s voice. He pulled a pack of cigarettes out of his pocket, but couldn’t bear to light one. Melvin’s words about Junior’s old nickname rang through his head and he groaned, tossing the pack away and roughly running a palm over his face, “I met someone.”

His words were practically _grunted_ out and there was a pause as Dick waited for any more information, then disbelief filled the call as he sputtered out, “Holy shit, you’re serious? You’ve been there a day!”

Jason didn’t speak and Dick rubbed his forehead, “Gordon’s already on my ass about letting you even _do_ this, Little Wing. I don’t think--”

“How many kids did Slade’s kid have? The second one that died?”

Silence was the only answer to his abrupt topic change. Then the sound of the policeman taking a heavy sip of coffee, the gears in his head rolling loud enough for Jason to hear, “Jericho had two that we know of. Possibly three.”

Dick let out a hum and opened up the case’s folder, guessing the obvious, “You interested in this person only for the mission, or…?”

Another silence, punctuated with Jason closing the bottle, sighing, opening the whisky back up and taking a long sip. Dick stayed patient and after a long minute of quiet Jason clicked his tongue, “Or.”

A breath of air, not quite a laugh and not quite a sigh, “You’ve always had a habit of finding the worst situations to get into, huh?” Dick let out a leisurely chuckle as he quickly flipped open his notes and scribbled down something. He let out a rumbling sigh that reminded Jason of Alfred and clicked his pen two times, “What’s their name?”

“Raven,” Jason felt a lazy smile come to his face as he remembered the oh-so-attractive way she had clutched above her heart and kept the shopping cart’s bar balanced against her hip when they’d literally ran into each other, her neck craning up so she could look him in the eye. He shook his head to clear his mind, “Raven Roth.”

Dick’s breath hitched, “Roth?” 

Jason raised a brow as the sound of keyboard clicks and folders being flipped through filled the phone. He patiently leaned back against the sofa and took a slow sip of whisky, humming at the familiar burn. After a pause and a particular curse that got a snicker out of the newly made teacher, Dick seemed to remember his brother was still on the line. “Jay?”

As if their conversation hadn’t had another brief hiatus, Jason grunted out, “I won’t ask what _that_ was about.” He wiped at his lips and let his head fall back against the stiff cushions. Emerald eyes focused on the popcorn ceiling and he mindlessly wondered whether the texture or his half empty bottle was the reason for the shadows shifting of their own volition. Jason smirked; as if half a bottle could fuck him up _that_ quickly. 

He closed his eyes and drawled out, “She mentioned issues with her father-in-law and that she was recently widowed.” Dick hummed at that and he added, “Three kids, a girl then two boys. I think they really like me.” A chortle escaped, “Hell, _all_ the kids at that school seem to like me.”

That got him a louder hum. The detective murmured, “And you like them? I don’t think I’ve ever seen you with kids. You’re good with animals but you aren’t the most patient type.”

Jason decided _not_ to comment on how outrageously fast children could make a mess or his _horrible_ idea of bringing a goddamn dog to school. He sipped his bottle again, pivoting the conversation away from anything the commissioner could use to bring him back to Gotham, “Well there aren’t many male kindergarten teachers.”

He tapped at his bicep, “Let alone buff ones.”

“This is a check-up call, Jay. No time to stroke your ego,” Still, Dick seemed to be in high spirits as he reviewed his notes. He stapled some pages together and said, “I’ll follow up on all this but just… keep an eye out for Raven, okay? She might know more than she’s letting on.”

The words bubbled out before he could stop them, “Oh, she absolutely does.” 

Dick paused, his brows furrowing, “What do you mean?”

Yet another sip of whisky. Jason decided to blame his loose lips on the alcohol as he admitted, “She didn’t interview me for the job --apparently only the principal knows that I’m not here just to teach-- but Raven’s _smart_ , Dickie. Noticed almost as much about me as I did about her.” He considered going so far as to mention that she knew his real name was Jason, but these calls were probably recorded and the commissioner _really_ didn’t need to know that.

Dick let the words hang in the air for a long second as he thought, then sighed, “I’ll call and let Gordon know.” 

Jason winced and pulled the phone a few inches from his ear as a high-pitched bell suddenly rang through, peppered in with the detective’s curse, “Sorry, Little Wing.” His older brother sounded remorseful, “That’s the patrol siren. They’re gonna need all available hands.”

Jason smirked and capped the bottle for the night, tossing it to the other side of the couch before he changed his mind, “Blüdhaven as much of a cesspool as Gotham?”

“Hey!”

“You know I’m right.”

He could practically _hear_ Dick roll his eyes, “You’re wrong, but I gotta go. You just stay safe and keep me updated, alright?”

The unqualified teacher sighed and ran a hand through his hair, wondering if Raven noticed the smell of dye near his bangs, “Will do, Dickolas. You better not die out there, you hear me?”

The detective’s laugh rang through the line, “Love you too, Jaybird.”

Jason let out a grunt and let his brother hang up. Dropping his phone on the cushions next to him, olive eyes closed and he thought of the supermarket again, of how Raven had given him a tired nod as she spoke of the field trip. It may not have even been nine yet, but watching over a horde of children was _exhausting_ and he’d have to go to bed soon. _Especially_ if a certain single mother of three was gonna chaperone with him first thing tomorrow morning. 

A tiny smile lit up Jason’s face as Raven fully took over his mind’s eye. He recognized it, forced it down into a frown. He was on a mission. He couldn’t get distracted; not only was his new chance at life on the line but Slade was still on the loose and his daughter-in-law was almost certainly going to get murdered if they didn’t close in on his plans as quickly as possible. 

Who honestly, truly cared if Jason was thinking about who he believed that very same daughter-in-law to be? And did it _really_ matter whether or not a tiny part of him agonized over whether she’d be fine with an ex-felon in her home?

He sat up, resting his elbows on his knees as he palmed his face. Set to forcibly derail this _ridiculous_ train of thought, the reformed criminal tried to think of something, of _anything_ else. His thoughts were a mess; they had been finding their way back to Raven since he’d left the supermarket. Hell, he’d been thinking of her and that muted little half-smile since he knocked on her class’ window for help. 

Mindlessly, Jason wondered what it’d be like to see her smile just for him… 

Shaking his head, the teacher groaned into his hands and rapped at his temples. What kind of thought was _that?_ What was he? A high schooler with a crush? He was an idiot.

_God_ , he was such a _fucking_ idiot.

\--

Jason adjusted the lapels of his blazer, rolling his jaw as he tried to prepare for the chaos that would be another day. His eyes glanced through the office’s windows at the schoolbus in the parking lot, set to carry a class of kindergartners, two classes of first graders, and only three chaperones. He jumped as a voice drawled out from behind him, “You look nervous.”

Raven raised a brow as he spun to face her, the corners of her mouth quirking up. She bit the inside of her cheek as she reassured him, “You’re going quite well, actually.” The teacher shifted the pile of graded papers in her arm and tilted her head to the side. That half-smile was both mocking and genuine, “Far better than Principal Beecher or I thought you’d fare.”

“Glad to have your confidence,” Jason bit back a laugh as he glanced at the clock again, knowing that he while had a few more minutes until the mad rush that was all the kids rushing to line up would begin, he really just had a few more minutes of Raven until they’d be responsible for keeping Jump’s Museum of History free from any disasters. Before he could capitalize gray eyes flicked to his side and a high voice piped up, “Hey, Mr. Todd?”

Jason turned from Raven to raise a brow at the girl, glad that her cold seemed to have cleared up. He grinned at her and crouched, tipping an invisible hat her way. She giggled as he greeted, “Morning, Lian. Need anything?”

She slowly nodded, her gaze flicking to the school’s front doors for just a second. Her olive eyes were curious as she rocked on her heels, the movement making her shoes light up, “Mr. Todd, are you married?”

Raven choked on her spit. She tried to disguise it as a cough but failed miserably, so she simply turned her torso away lest Lian notice how wide her eyes went. Jason blinked once, twice, knowing that he was failing just as badly to keep the shock out of his face. Whether that shock was from the bluntness of the question or Raven’s reaction, he didn’t know. Regardless, the teacher cleared his throat and rubbed at his neck, “Uh, no. I’m not, actually.”

Lian brightened up and she eagerly nodded, her messy hair bouncing with the move, “Okay.”

She skipped to the doorway and leaned her head out, screaming, “HE’S NOT MARRIED, DADDY!”

Raven bit back a smile and ran a tongue over her teeth, her shoulders shaking as she pushed her glasses higher up her nose, “You’re just getting a whole fanclub, huh?’

Jason smirked as he stood up. He shrugged, biting back any positive thoughts when he noticed the teacher discreetly looking him over, “I guess so.”

\--

Raven lazily ran a hand through Melvin’s hair as she slept against her side, smiling as she turned around and spied Jason’s eye from across the bus. A snicker threatened to escape her at the sight of him in the very last row, three snoozing kids smushed against each side. 

‘Comfy?’ She mouthed to him. 

Jason winked at her instead of answering and Timmy shifted against his ribs, yawning. Raven kept her face stoic but mentally noted that she’d have to offer to clean his shirt from her son’s drool, but that was for later on. For now, all she could do was give him one more smile and turn back to face the front of the bus, kissing her daughter’s hairline before the bus's shaking could wake her up. 

An hour and a half later she was softly ushering her kids from the bus to the grass outside the school. They stumbled a bit as they shook the sleep out of their legs, but everyone was fine, if a bit tired. Once all the students were accounted for Raven immediately looked around for Jason and paused, shaking her head as she realized how ridiculous she was being. Sighing, she couldn’t help but admit to herself that she _wanted_ to see him off before she picked Junior up, but she had to at least _pretend_ she was still the idol of professionalism that she claimed to be. 

Smiling as she waved at Melvin and Lian as they chattered on with some of their friends, Raven turned around to check that the third graders were following the crossing guard’s directions when she caught sight of Jason. 

His blazer was folded over his arm and his phone was pressed to his ear. Raven was about ready to call to him, but the seriousness on his face made her pause. The way he strode past and kept his face down gave her some alarm and the mother watched as he deliberately went around the cars so as to not have to rebuff any of the kids or parents. 

Jason kept the phone pressed to his face as he nudged Sparky into the passenger seat and took off, not stopping his conversation once. Raven’s lips pursed as she watched him go. 

\--

In the shelter of his car’s rolled up windows, Jason let a string of curses fly out. He made a U-turn to avoid the traffic from the intersection in front of the school and turned onto the road headed towards the motel, “What the fuck do you mean he’s getting out?!”

Dick seemed just as frustrated. Even the precinct sounds in the background were agitated, “All four of our witnesses _died_ , Jay. There’s nothing we can hold him indefinitely for.” An annoyed scoff slipped out of the detective, “And Slade’s plenty rich enough to afford bail. That means he’s getting out Sunday morning, maybe afternoon if we’re lucky.”

Jason squeezed the steering wheel until his knuckles went white. His thoughts were running a mile a minute, focusing on all that could go wrong. Slade being out meant he would be even more incensed and murderous than usual, and if an irate Slade knew to come to Jump he wouldn’t hesitate to come for his grandchildren himself no matter who stood in his way-- 

Dick’s voice both stopped and egged on that _awful_ train of thought, “Any other leads besides Raven?”

The felon rolled his jaw, an unusual and unappreciated ball on terror filling his stomach at what could happen. He shook his head, “No, I’m pretty sure it’s her.”

He listened to the sound of his brother roughly running a hand over his face and sucking a breath over his teeth as he contemplated his options. Dick’s voice rang in his ears, terse and strained, “‘Pretty sure’ isn’t good enough for an arrest, let alone a conviction, Little Wing.”

The police officer clicked his pen, “What about the other kids? You said there were twelve boys besides the twins--”

“Only eight have siblings and none of them match up.”

Dick shrugged off his interruption, “But what about up to two years difference? Maybe even three? How many then?”

Jason narrowed his eyes as he turned into the parking lot, a knot in his stomach as he realized he had zeroed in. A rough sigh escaped, “Four, including Timmy.” Weakly, he tried to reason before Dick could speak, “But if there’s a third baby then--”

His older brother grunted out, “We only have an _assumption_ that Jericho’s wife was pregnant. Nothing’s completely certain. _Never_ with Slade.”

While his fingers tightened on the wheel olive eyes softened at the all-too-familiar snap in Dick’s voice, knowing that his brother’s obsession was probably keeping him from sleeping again. At his silence the detective sighed and ground his name out, “Jason.” 

As he parked the car Jason could perfectly imagine the guilty tap of his brother’s shoe on the tile and the undercurrent of _anger_ that filled his shoulders whenever he encountered any mention of Slade. Dick rolled his jaw, his voice softer, “You aren’t a cop so I need to make sure you aren’t biased.”

The felon-turned-teacher pulled the key out of the ignition and let his head fall back against the headrest. He couldn’t keep that nervous knot out of his stomach at the thought of leaving his lead into Raven’s life for another. But that instinct that had kept him from being jumped back in jail was back and he was certain that he could trust his gut now, “I’m sure it’s her.”

“Or do you just _want_ it to be her?”

Jason unbuckled his seatbelt and stepped out of the car, a silent breath escaping. He didn’t answer for a few seconds and Dick pushed, “I don’t like rushing you but we _need_ to get his daughter-in-law under police protection before the weekend’s over.”

The detective’s frustration was obviously close to bubbling over, as it always did whenever Slade was involved and Dick emphasized, “I need you to step up and be _objective_ , Jason. I’m not letting this guy go again, got it?”

The teacher glanced down at his folders, his lips tightening into a thin line, “I’ll look over my notes.”

“Thanks. Now just… just get back to me as soon as possible, alright?” Jason nodded even though his brother couldn’t see and the receiver let off a scratchy sort of noise, as if Dick was going to hang up but just barely caught himself. Jason knew he wouldn’t ever end calls so bluntly and forced a chuckle. He bit the inside of his cheek and spoke up his usual, “Don’t die out there, Dick.”

A haggard sigh, then a quiet, appreciative, “Love you too, Jay.”

Jason hung up. 

\--

The room was quiet, the silence peppered with the occasional snore. The carpet was home to a pile of sleeping kindergartners, their favorite blankets, Sparky the Second, and a few crumbled (but hopefully empty, for the laundromat’s sake) cartons of chocolate milk. 

Jump City Elementary’s kindergarten teacher was slumped over his desk, too tired to even look over his notes. Jason sighed as he rubbed his fists into his eyes, the throbbing in his head making him even more miserable. Dick’s last instructions rang in his mind and a part of him wished the kids weren’t napping so he could have _some_ distraction. 

Less than a goddamn week…

He thought of Raven, wondered if he _was_ just as biased as Dick claimed. But Timmy was the only kid in his class that matched up with all three age ranges and he was just… unsure. Unsure of everything; of his future status, of Raven’s past, of his class’ safety, of Dick’s sanity. Jason thought of Slade, wondered if it was worthwhile going beyond the commissioner’s orders and warning Beecher about any one-eyed men that might show up. 

He pressed his palms even rougher against his eyes and watched the colorful spots light up his eyelids. They shot open as the door let out a _click!_ and he jumped, his gaze meeting Raven’s. 

The music teacher jumped with him, a hand coming up above her heart. “Sorry,” She whispered and carefully took a step back, her hand keeping the door from closing too loud, “I didn’t mean to startle you.” 

When he didn’t seem too against her coming in she took a small step forward. Jason blinked at her as she tiptoed past the blanket edges that was the pile of slumbering kindergartners, shaking his head as he tried to calm his heartbeat. “It’s fine-- I’m fine,” Jason whispered back. He stood and made sure to miss the squeaky step as he met her near the backpacks, “Just got lost in my own head for a bit.”

A bit of tension and a lot of sadness crossed her face, disappearing so quick he would’ve missed it had he blinked. Raven shrugged a shoulder, “Easy to do in Jump.”

Shaking herself from her thoughts gray eyes scanned over his face. That small smile came back and she glanced at his mouth. Jason chuckled, “What?”

Raven took a step closer, obviously reveling in the way he didn’t shy away from her slinking into his personal space. Her hand came up to his cheek and she stroked the side of his mouth, “You’ve got a bit of a mustache…”

Jason’s hand came up to cover hers. The pads of his fingers were rough against her knuckles and she flushed, her face unreadable. Thinking better of himself, the felon let his hand drop, sheepish, “Must’ve been the milk.” 

Raven ran a thumb over the corner of his mouth and reluctantly pulled away, not able to tear herself away from his eyes. She bit the inside of her cheek and murmured, “You don’t seem the milk type.” 

“Well, you know.” He aimed a boyish smirk her way, both aware that he shouldn’t, “What with the whole caring for kids all day I thought most teachers preferred the harder stuff.” 

That got him an actual smile and the spine-tingling sound of Raven fighting back a laugh, her eyes closing as she muffled her agreement. His stomach knotted at the sight, surging up into his throat so fast he had to remind himself to breathe. 

“Well, Mr. Todd,” Raven’s voice was no louder than a breath as she calmed down and raised up on the toe of her heels, her fingers nervously thrumming on the pyrope pendant around her neck. “I was wondering if you’d like to join us for dinner. Non-milk drinks included. It could be tonight or tomorrow or even--”

He interrupted her, shuffling half a step closer, "Tonight would be best."

This was a bad idea; he still didn’t think he was _biased_ , but this surely wouldn’t help. Jason didn’t say anything more as he held her gaze, trying to talk himself out of saying yes. Raven’s stare flicked from his eyes to his lips and back before she shuffled half a step closer, emboldened by whatever she saw. She pulled a folded notecard out of her pocket. 

Raven fiddled with her glasses again, “Here’s the address. I know it’s early, but does six thirty sound good?”

Jason’s shoulders shook as he chuckled, grinning down at her as his hand brushed hers. A smile brightened his face as he took the note and he leaned closer to promise, “I’ll be there.”

Raven looked relieved, “Good! I mean--” She brought her voice down to a whisper as the twins nearly stirred at her outburst. Softly laughing, she re-adjusted her glasses again, horribly aware that her nerves were getting the best of her, “I hope you like salmon.”

\--

Jason didn’t let go of the note the rest of the school day. He found himself mindlessly touching the breast pocket where he tucked it away when the kids were busy with their work, or coloring, or giving Sparky the Second his end-of-school pets as they got their backpacks ready. 

On his way out the door Timmy had given him a particularly excited, “See you _later_ , Mister Todd!” and Melvin poked her head through the door and waved like a maniac. Jason didn’t see how quickly they must have rushed Raven so they could get home to prepare (yet alone _how_ they knew about their dinner plans, but oh well), so he simply mingled with some of the parents as he made his way through the hallways, waved at Principal Beecher through the window, got Sparky settled in the front seat and started heading towards his temporary home. 

His good mood vanished and he gripped his steering wheel as he drove up, not sure what to make of the Gotham plates or his kitchen light being on. But he had a pretty good idea. Jason pulled the note from his pocket and tucked it away in his wallet. Olive eyes closed as he rolled his jaw and turned off the car. His brother was casually eating a sandwich when he stormed in, somehow looking both casual and exhausted as Jason hissed out, “What the fuck are you doing here?”

Dick let out a laugh as he wiped the crumbs off his face, the sound nowhere near as bright as usual but not humorless, “It’s great to see you too, Little Wing!”

The felon crossed his arms and glowered; the detective sighed and opened his arms, “No hug first?”

“No.” Jason glanced at the bags that hung below sapphire eyes and he gritted out again, his voice still angry but less abrasive, “Now why are you here?”

Dick chuckled and ran a hand through his hair, turning his stare to the ceiling. His brows bunched and he swallowed the air in his throat, exhausted from more than just the long flight and the annoyance that was getting possession of his flown-in car at the airport, “It’s Friday, Jay. Slade gets out in less than 48 hours. It’s looking to be more like 36 at this point.”

Jason sighed and slumped in the seat next to him. He swiped some of his brother’s chips and repeated for the umpth time behind a bite of the discarded PB&J, “Raven was Jericho’s wife.”

“You’re sure?”

Licking his lips, the younger brother decided to be honest, “She invited me to dinner at her house tonight.”

Dick’s brows jumped but he stayed quiet at the look on Jason’s face. Sighing, the ex-criminal rubbed at his jaw, musing over the possibilities of any of the other kindergartners being Slade’s grandkid, “And Melvin mentioned something on the playground this morning.” 

He pinched in between his eyes, worried as he revealed, “Said something about the last time she saw her grandpa they had to leave in the middle of the night a few days after.” Jason paid no mind to the way Dick perked up, looking as if he was regaining and losing even more of his sanity. The teacher leaned back in his chair and muttered out, “The twins have some toys with Spanish on them and she was complaining that Raven didn’t let her keep any of her Swedish dolls.”

The police officer rested his forearms on the table, his eyes wild and his voice coming out fast, “Did she mention having a collection? Lots of Bratz with crocheted dresses and wooden food pieces?”

Jason met his brother’s feverish stare, “You forgot to mention the abomination of Timmy’s patchwork quilt.”

Blüdhaven’s detective sagged back in his chair. Dick ran his hands over his face, his mind racing over all the information he knew from over half a decade of combing over the trail of destruction that Slade always left behind, “Raven was Jericho’s wife…”

Jason couldn’t bring himself up to be glad that this part of the mystery was solved. He forced a smile, although he knew the concern was clear on his face, “That’s what I’ve been telling you.”

Dick lowered his head to gaze at him, softening as he decided not to mention the sincerity behind Jason’s obvious bias. He ran a tongue over his teeth, making up his mind not to pry until after he got some of his own surveillance in, “You said you have dinner with her tonight?”

Jumping in surprise, green eyes flicked to the clock and relief flooded the teacher when he saw he still had an hour of his brother before he could reasonably kick him out and start grading their spelling sheets, “At six thirty.”

Despite everything with the mission and the ticking clock that hung over their heads, Dick didn’t need to be a detective to notice his baby brother’s body language. Some of his signature playfulness threatened to brighten his eyes and Dick rested his chin in his hand, “When was the last time I helped you prep for a _date?_ Not since you were still in high school, right?” 

A blank stare was his answer. Then a blatant, “No.”

A bit more gaiety filled Dick’s voice, “C’mon! If my future niece and nephews are gonna be part-Slade I think I should--” He cut himself off as Jason abruptly got up, not even trying to bite back his snickers as Jason headed for the bedroom.

Pulling the notes that the felon left for him to look over, the cop called out to his back, “The market should have flowers if you want me to pick some up!”

Jason let out a sigh and shut the door behind him.

Just over two hours later he drove up to what seemed more of a vacation-house than a suburban home. But Raven’s dinged up SUV was in the driveway and he parked next to it, hesitantly walking to the front door and knocking. 

Raven peeked through the peephole and eagerly opened the door, looking the most homey and the most charming that he’d seen her yet. Her bun had been replaced with a short, messy braid and the ‘Kiss the cook, Read a book’ apron was splattered with food and flour. Jason couldn’t keep the smile off his face as he watched her flush as she remembered the apron when a smear of flour covered the knob, opening the door fully so he could step in. 

A pale hand moved aside some of the loose strands of hair from her face, “Hey there.”

Her flush worsened as he handed her a small bouquet and motioned to the bottle of wine under him arm, “Hey, yourself.”

Realizing that she was somewhat crowding him, Raven took a step back and fiddled with her glasses, “No need to just stand there. Come in, come in.” She busied herself with tucking the flowers in a vase near the stairs and Jason let out a low whistle as he took off his shoes, blinking incredulously as he got a chance to fully take in the house’s magnificence.

“HR must be getting quite the bonus,” He joked.

Raven stifled her laugh and motioned for him to follow her. She took the wine from him and led the way to the dining room, fondly glancing at all the pictures of and by her kids that lined the walls, “It belongs to a friend of mine. He’s in… it should be London now? I think.”

Shaking her head, gray eyes met his, “He and his cousin are show magicians. Apparently she stays in California too but he’s fond of Jump.” She tucked some more her hair out of her face, her gaze straying on Jason’s face, “When he got news that we needed to move he offered to let us stay.” 

Jason raised a brow as they entered the massive dining room, biting back a chuckle at the contrast between the chandelier and the baby toys balanced atop the paint-splattered dollhouse in the corner. Raven’s head rolled back as her shoulders bounced at his reaction, “I know it’s a bit messy but we just gotta keep feeding the sourdough starter and make sure the spiders don’t rise up anytime soon.”

“You’ve got great friends,” He ran his fingers over a toy that looked like a blanket. Raven noticed his confusion and cradled the wine closer to her chest, “That’s one of Mel’s. She used to have a bunch of them but when we moved Bobby stole her heart.”

The words sped out of him before he could think, “Seems that stealing hearts is something Jump’s great at.”

Raven didn’t know what to say to that, but the _beep!_ of the timer going off kept her from having to answer. Clearing her throat she took a step towards the door, “The fish is ready. Could you give me a sec to put everything out?” 

She jerked a thumb in the staircase’s direction and that tiny half-smile was back, “You could let the kids know you’re here. Though I gotta warn that you’ll probably get bum rushed.”

“Nothing amiss, then?” Jason winked as he reluctantly strolled away from her, rolling his shoulders and discreetly glancing around for any obvious sign of who was Raven’s ex. All the drawers looked squeaky and he decided against any snooping for now. Getting to the base of the stairs the ex-criminal looked over the pictures that lined the walls, disappointed and relieved when he didn’t see any sign of him. 

He cupped a hand over his mouth and loudly stage-called, “And here I thought this is where a few anklebiters lived!”

Raven’s laugh carried from the kitchen but Jason’s attention was on the ambush coming his way. The two kids practically flew through the corridor and bounded down the stairs, “MISTER TODD!!!”

Luckily he had his feet planted when they ran into his legs. “Sorry I didn’t bring Sparky to join us,” Jason teased as he lifted Teether from Melvin’s grasp. Cradling the baby with one arm and letting Timmy hang from the other, he held out a foot and waited until Melvin and Bobby were comfortably situated around his legs before taking off on jerky steps. 

Halfway to the dining room a soft laugh made him stop and he met Raven’s gaze, an awkward but amused smile on his face. Something dark and something _warm_ slipped across her face at the sight of him getting along with her kids so well, but at his stare the teacher pushed them down and let a tiny smile curl the ends of her lips, “Dinner’s still a good five minutes out. You don’t mind entertaining them for a little while?”

Going with her attempts to lighten the mood Jason teased, “No overtime?”

That smile widened an inch and gray eyes flicked down to her children’s bright faces, “Not for tonight.” Raven glanced at her youngest and the Spongebob pacifier that Melvin must’ve picked for him, glad that he’d slept through all of his nap. She shrugged a shoulder Jason’s way, “I can keep Junior with me if you’d like?”

“Nah, I’m okay.” Jason bounced the baby once, chuckling as he had to lift Timmy a few inches higher to keep his balance, “I don’t think the little guy’ll be too fussy.”

“Well have fun, then.” Raven held his gaze for a second more then softened, waving to her children as they pulled at him to follow them. 

The kids led him through the backdoor, into the backyard and along a path in between two blackberry bushes, the space just wide enough to fit his shoulders if he leaned until he was nearly bent in half. Olive eyes blinked incredulously at the mini wonderland of hanging twine and berries that he stumbled into, muffling the “Goddamn” that inadvertently slipped out with a cough.

Fortunately, the two oldest didn’t seem to notice. “This,” Melvin spread her arms as wide as she could, nothing besides laden clumps of berries, frizzled streamers and sunbleached thorns in sight, “Is the Tower.”

Timmy skipped forward and clicked an extension cord on, his blanket trailing behind him, “It’s our secret hideout!” He abruptly turned around to stare at the teacher and put a finger over his pursed lips. Jason bit back a smile at _Timmy_ of all people urging quiet and crouched down to listen to the boy.

“Even Momma doesn’t know about this place,” He loudly whispered. 

Melvin slipped under the arm not occupied by Teether to add, “You can’t tell _anyone_ what we’ve got!” When faced with three set of blue eyes focused on him (although the baby’s was far less serious) Jason crossed his heart, solemnly promising, “Scout’s honor.”

The first grader blinked as her brother tilted his head in confusion, “ _You_ were a boy scout?”

A part of Jason abruptly realized and considered the fact that Dick had yet to say if he could stay in Jump after all this and another part promised to find out the answer, especially after tonight; sighing, he murmured to the kids, “My brother was.”

Before Timmy could burst into a million questions Melvin put a hand on his arm. “You have a brother too?” She scooted closer and cupped her hand over his ear. Secretly narrowing her eyes at Timmy then Teether and back to Timmy, she sighed out just between them, “They _suck_ , right?”

Jason ran a tongue over his teeth, trying not to laugh. Pivoting the conversation away (especially at the hint of watery eyes that Timmy was sporting at being left out of a secret), the teacher tilted his chin towards the growth of leafy bushes and carefully hung up blankets that the children were originally leading him to. 

“Aren’t I supposed to be getting a tour of the Tower?” The girl perked up at his reminder and grabbed his hand while Timmy shot ahead, yelling out “THIS WAY!”

Briefly, Jason wondered if Raven ever considered buying earplugs. But that thought went away as he ducked under the dome of a waterproof tarp, his brows jumping nearly to his hairline as he took in everything the kids had accumulated. They had an old wooden rocking chair and a recliner, both covered in two quilts that matched the living room couch’s throw. A short braided basket was stuffed with what must have been a dog bed, a blanket, and a mass of leftover yarn; the name ‘Cougher’ was crossed out and ‘Teether’ was plastered over it in black marker. Judging by the toys that laid near them Timmy had previously claimed the rocking chair and Melvin the recliner, but the girl graciously offered him her seat as she squeezed in next to her brother. 

They swung their legs to rock the chair as he set Junior down in his spot, already tittering to themselves at the awe that had yet to leave the teacher’s face. The shadows from the leftover Christmas lights lit up his features and the felon let out an incredulous laugh at all the storage bin-turned-nook that held a heating pad to keep their stuffed animals warm and the twine that held hole-punched ziplocs of emergency snacks, “You kids are resourceful.”

Timmy was positively glowing with the praise and Melvin tossed a pigtail over her shoulder, obviously proud that a grown-up was appreciating their work, “We gotta be.”

“Yeah?” Jason carefully got situated in the chair, trying not to put too much strain on the thing. 

Standing and cradling Bobby to her chest, Melvin nodded as she carefully adjusted the fairy lights so they couldn’t be seen from outside the Tower. Once she was satisfied that they were well closed off, she looked around the area once more and leaned in close to tell him another secret, “Timmy and I were born in Sweden!”

Dick’s notes on where Jericho primarily lived came to mind. He raised a brow, hoping to everything that could keep him in Jump that he was right and wishing for Raven’s sake that he was wrong, “In Stockholm?”

On the rocking chair, Timmy’s face snapped up to his, “Yeah, how’d you guess?”

Melvin’s nose scrunched as she nodded to her brother’s question but, shrugging their suspicion off, Jason simply said, “It’s the capital.”

The blonds seemed to take him at face value. Timmy wrapped his blankets around himself and Melvin set her teddy bear down on the baby’s feet. “Weeeeeeeell,” She drawled as she sat in the leafy overgrowth and used the excess of Junior’s makeshift crib as a pillow, “We move a lot.”

Timmy argued, tucking his chin above the knot of his blanket-cape, “But not in a long while though! The bad men haven’t been around since Teether was still Cougher!”

A knot twisted in Jason’s stomach, “The bad men?”

The boy gave his sister a look and a sigh, as if saying ‘this silly guy doesn’t even _know_.’ He rubbed a corner of his blanket in between his fingers and whisper-shouted, “They tried to get us when we were in a hotel!” 

Melvin nodded emphatically to her brother’s exclamation, adding helpfully, “It was when we first came to California. The first time they came we had to leave all the big stuff back at home and then we had to leave _all_ our toys in the bathtub!”

Jason knew why; that tactic helped him escape arrest more than once, “So you could sneak out through the parking lot before they could verify which room was yours.” 

At his mindless observation the kids paused, seeming to be just realizing why they had to take the time to put everything away. Nonetheless a pout covered the girl’s face and she bemoaned, “I kept Bobby and Timmy kept his blankie, but everything else is _gone!_ It sucked.”

Before they could commiserate further or Jason could ask them anything else, Raven’s voice filled the air, “Dinner’s ready you four!” Given the fact that she was shouting to the spot adjacent to the Tower she was obviously confused to _where_ they were, but the mother knowingly added, “And there might be a pie on the table too! Hurry and wash up before it gets cold!”

\--

Even with the kids tucked in and the quiet whir of the dishwasher filling the air, Jason couldn’t relax. To keep himself busy he used his lighter to light the candles Raven had left out, looking up as she silently trotted down the stairs a minute later. The teacher made a brief detour to the kitchen then put two cups of tea on the coffee table, coming up to stand alongside him. 

“Hope you don’t mind us having to be quiet,” She murmured, carefully taking one of the candles and making space for it on the fireplace mantel. Gray eyes were tired and soft and he could so easily imagine the sight of her leaning over and kissing each child’s forehead. His heart twisted and she tugged at an earlobe, “Melvin’s a bit sensitive when it comes to really falling asleep.”

The awful adjustment period of getting used to falling asleep in the noisiness that was jail flashed through his head and Jason shrugged, “I get it.” 

She stared up into his face, her face unreadable but her tone warm enough, “You seem to get a lot, Jason.”

He didn’t know what to say to that.

“You know,” Raven sat on one end of the couch and took a sip of tea. Jason watched as she practically rolled with the warmth, her eyes opening and meeting his tender gaze a moment later. The felon couldn’t find it in him to try to hide the emotions she’d already seen on his face and Raven softly chuckled, “Melvin mentioned that you have a brother too.”

Her words sounded more of a question than anything and Jason shrugged, “Yeah, he’s a bit of a pain in my ass but I see him enough that it doesn’t get to be _too_ much, you know?”

Raven softly swirled her cup, watching as her tea arched until it just brushed against the rim, so close to spilling over. A drop slid onto her finger and she lifted the digit to run it over her lip, humming out, “Family’s like that, I suppose.”

Jason remembered to go slow, like Dick had coached him. Biting the inside of his cheek, olive eyes scanned her face, “The kids don’t have aunts or uncles, I assuming?”

“No, they do.” A flash of panic at the thought, then calm as Raven murmured, “Three from my side, fi-- four total. They aren’t in the picture, though. I’m the only adult they constantly have.” 

She took a large sip of tea. A deep breath sucked in through her nose, held until the cup was back in her lap, then sighed out as her shoulders went slack. Raven pushed the glasses up her nose and aimed a soft, forced smile his way. Gray eyes went from his face to her tea as she waited for him to ask. 

Jason clicked his tongue and decided to get the conversation over with, “But what about your ex-husband? When he was alive, I mean.” Faltering, the kindergarten teacher drummed his fingertips on his thigh, finally thinking about all the crimes Slade had committed and what kind of man Jericho could’ve been if he'd gotten so roped in. 

He cleared his throat, “I know even when separated custody is usually split unless one was _really_ bad…” 

Raven’s objection came immediately, “No. Not at all.” 

She looked into Jason’s face, shied away at the curiosity in his eyes. “Joseph was a good man. He loved the kids, he loved _me_ with everything he had,” Raven smiled to herself as she remembered life before Slade's influence destroyed it. Chuckling, she clung to the happiest of times, her voice wistful, “Joey played guitar too. He used to think of random notes, make a little melody and let the kids sing their own lyrics throughout the day. Then they’d come and sing to my stomach and hope Junior could hear them.” 

A tiny laugh bubbled up out of her and she gazed at him, tender and nostalgic, “You know he was mute?”

Jason couldn’t stop the snort from escaping him as he immediately glanced to where the children’s bedrooms were, “And you’re so quiet.” The memory of the tantrums Timmy could throw came to mind (alongside a ringing in his ears) and Jason shook his head, deciding that he _had_ to push just a little, “What happened?”

Her head snapped to him and Jason turned his head back to his tea at the emotion that crossed her eyes, “Sorry. I shouldn’t have--”

Raven shook her head but they both knew some of that sentimental intimacy was gone, possibly forever, “It’s fine.” She stood and poked at the candles, blowing them out and capping the jars before the smoke could permeate the room. As the wick’s dying embers fizzled out she reconsidered her words, “Well it’s not _fine_ , but I understand why you’re so curious.” 

Jason watched as she seemed to both deflate and go rigid. Raven let out a tired huff, “What tipped you off?”

Emerald eyes roamed her face. A breath filled his lungs at what he saw and he quickly mourned the enjoyable evening the rest of the night could’ve been. Jason rolled his jaw and shot back, “What tipped _you_ off?”

Raven bit the inside of her cheek, “I don’t know _why_ Blüdhaven and Gotham’s police are protecting you so much, but I _do_ know that Peter Todd has falsified an impeccable track record, solid references and actual teaching credentials to the point that it's easy to go undetected; Jason Todd has no such protections.”

He raised his chin, his heart on the floor, “You know.”

“That you’re a felon? That you've stolen and repurposed all that money, or that you killed that man after he nearly killed you?” Raven sniffed and aimed a protective, deadpan look his way, “Yes to all of it.”

Her gray eyes were dark but not yet mistrusting, “What do you know about me?”

Jason narrowed his eyes, knowing that with how biased he was he couldn’t possibly lie to her, “I know nothing for certain. But I have some theories.” Raven let out a humorless scoff at that, turning back to the pictures on the mantle. Jason noted that she didn’t put her back to him and he took another sip of tea. 

“Why are you here?”

Her question filled the living room and she shifted so she could look into his eyes, her fingers bunching over her thighs. Briefly, he wondered if she had any weapons on her, but Raven surged on with her thoughts, putting them to air as soon as they filled her brain, “If you were with _him_ you would’ve already tried to take them again.”

“Again?” 

Raven’s lips trembled at her slip and as understanding immediately lit up in his eyes. Her fingers squeezed into fists and immediately loosened as Jason murmured, “The bad men. The ones in the hotel, they were--”

“My father-in-law’s goons, yes.” 

“He’s not their grandfather?”

Raven vehemently shook her head, her lips curling at the mere thought, “He’s never been. They may have his blood but he is no family to my children.” Her harsh words faltered and an irked crease formed over her brows, “But you already knew that…” 

“And I’m trying to keep it that way,” He stood and she glared up at him. Jason held up his hands in a placating way, all-too-aware of how badly she was going to take his next words, “But before I can actually help I need to know about the money.”

Raven crossed her arms, “There is none.” She turned away from him, her forearms twitching as if she wanted nothing more than to properly hug herself but knew that she couldn’t afford being weak. She rolled her jaw once, then grunted out, “Joey kept some stashed aside, in case his father ever went too far and we needed a plan to escape.”

She looked as if she desperately wanted to say more but stopped, letting the air out of her lungs. Jason tried to take a step forward but Raven shifted her weight to take a step back. Sighing, he crossed his arms and stayed put, silently taking in what he could. Her throat moved as she thickly swallowed and her head turned to the mantle again. Her voice was practically a whisper, rough and raspy as she tried to keep herself from breaking, “They didn’t tell me when he died.” 

Shaking her head, Raven ran a tongue over her teeth and looked at the carpet, “The mission should’ve taken eight days. He died less than a day in. I found out from the morgue nearly two weeks later.” A laugh bubbled out of her and a chill tap-danced its way down Jason’s spine, “And that was only because I filed a missing person’s report and they cross-checked. And you wanna know what happened, Jason?”

He couldn’t find the strength to speak. 

Raven plopped down on the chair opposite the couch, exhausted beyond words and emotions. Even as she looked at him she didn’t really _see_ the felon as she spoke, “My friend Victor came with me. He’s strong and knows how to fight, so he watched the kids while I identified what was left of my husband. And while we were gone--” Her breath hitched amd she paused to lick at her dry lips, “--while we said goodbye Slade’s men ransacked our _home_. He took every single picture of my children that I wasn’t in and tore through the walls until they had every stash that Joey tried to hide.”

Her braid was starting to come undone with how much she was shaking her head. Raven didn’t seem to notice, pinching the skin between her eyes and rubbing at the lines on her forehead, “I didn’t even _know_ we had a safe under the floorboards under our bathtub, but we did. We had one behind the TV’s wall mount, one a few feet under the fridge,” Another chuckle barked its way out of her, “Hell, one was even buried under the boiler.”

A palm cradled her temple, “I don’t _have_ any money. We’re getting by on Zach’s generosity and what little I had saved up in my own personal accounts.”

She didn’t see as he raised a brow but still answered his question before he could think to ask it, “Our savings were combined. They took everything besides _them_.” Raven tenderly glanced to where the kids’ bedrooms were and her fingers tangled up in the collar of her shirt. That exhaustion came back to her eyes with a vengeance and she whispered, “I don’t know if I could go on if I didn’t have them.” 

Scoffing, she shook her head again and stared up at him. Jason ran a tongue over his teeth, uncertain of what he _could_ say and she rubbed at her temples, “I don’t even know _why_ I just told you that. We’re gonna have to run again, aren’t we?”

He found his voice at how _drained_ she was, “You won’t need to--”

A burst of energy filled the mother and she hastily stood, already planning out how’d they leave, when she’d tell Zach and agonizing over the hotel crawl they’d have to endure again, “If you found me, he could find us. I can’t-- I can’t risk that.” Her pupils were blown wide, the gray of her eyes impossibly thin as she ran a hand through her messy braid and wondered how much they could bring with them. 

“Raven,” Jason shot forward and grabbed her hand, stalling her strides. Her glare pierced him but he didn’t let go, pleading, “At least give me a chance to see what I can do.” His hands cradled her left one and his thumbs brushed against the tanline where her ring used to sit, “Give me a chance, _please_.”

Her voice was dark and pessimistic but she didn’t pull her hand away, “Why, just so you can be free? No more prison hanging over your head?”

Jason jerked, surprised at how his own future was so far off from his mind. Shaking his head, he squeezed her hand, “So _you_ can be free of Slade. So you can raise them without worrying if you’ll need to pack up and disappear in the middle of the night. Again.”

They stared at each other for a long moment but Raven’s face didn’t soften. Defensive and on-edge, she glared as he sighed, “Look, Raven. You knew about my situation and still trusted me enough to invite me for dinner, just give me till Monday. Three days, that’s all I ask.” 

The skin between her brows loosened at his suggestion but she was still hesitant and Jason didn’t even try to stop the words from bubbling out, directives be damned, “My brother’s a detective on this case. He’s the one who got me this chance and he’s _here_ , at the place I’m staying.” 

Raven narrowed her eyes as Jason continued, “He’ll watch over the house at night and I’ll be at school the whole time during the day. They’ll be safe, I promise.”

She bit the inside of her cheek and let out a breath through her nose. The futility of running while Jason was there was too much to overcome, so she decided to go along with him for now, “I want to meet him.” Gray eyes were full of conflicting emotions that spilled out onto her face; worry and hope, wariness and trust, hatred and confidence. 

Raven cleared her throat, “Your brother. I _need_ to meet him first.”

Jason lowered their hands but didn’t let go. A small smile threatened his lips, “He’s probably the only one who hates Slade as much as you do.” His murmur only made the teacher sigh and Raven let her forehead meet his chest, “I really fucking hope so.”

Feeling bold with how Raven seemed to be getting used to the idea, Jason tilted her chin up and kissed the crown of her head, right where her widow’s peak came to a point. “I can have him come with me to school, if you’d like?”

Raven raised her face at that. She considered the idea but her lips curled down into a frown. Jason nudged her head with his as she closed her eyes and sighed. If she wasn’t so drained, Raven would have been aghast and thrilled at how their lips practically brushed with the move. 

Her words came out quiet, “Could you… stay the night? Just on the couch?”

“Of course.” He faltered as one of her hands came up to aimlessly trace a scar on his jaw, but Jason recovered enough to murmur in the space between them, “And Dick can drop off my things in the morning.”

A laugh escaped the woman, subdued as the full extent of their conversation started to hit her. Still, she enjoyed the brief reprieve and tittered out, “Why am I not surprised your brother’s name is Dick?”

Jason snickered and kissed her forehead again.

\--

Raven softly padded down the stairs at the sound of tires driving up her driveway, her narrowed eyes softening at the sight of the man that must’ve been Jason’s brother in the car. She glanced at her fellow teacher, still passed out on the couch, and wrapped her robe tighter around herself. 

Her hip rested against the couch’s arm and she softly shook his shoulder, “Jason…” 

The felon let out a groan and shifted under the blanket, “Mmhhmmm…?”

His grumbles turned into a hum as Raven’s fingers slid up to run through his hair. Biting back her smile, Raven murmured, “It’s half past six.”

Jason shifted as he tried to shake away the cobwebs of sleep and she added, “And your brother just pulled up.”

An annoyed groan was her answer and she chuckled, letting go of him and standing as Dick knocked on the door. She opened the door and bit back a smile; while the black hair and bright eyes were similar enough he wasn’t as tall as Jason but _goodness_ , he looked far too fresh at six thirty in the morning. _Especially_ when they didn’t have to go to school. 

The detective grinned at her, “Raven, right?”

He looked trustworthy enough, “You must be Dick.” She moved aside to let him in and gray eyes flicked to the box in his hands. A tiny quirk came on the corners of her lips, “Although the stereotype wasn’t necessary.”

The policeman held up the donuts with a carefree shrug, giddy that she resembled the little bit of what they knew Jericho’s wife to look like and positively enthralled at the way Jason glanced at her from his spot on the couch. 

Although she was still wary Raven didn’t stare as he maneuvered through her presumably temporary home; no, Jason trusted him so she would at least try to as well. The mother watched as he strolled to where his brother lay and draped his ironed clothes near his feet. Dick perched on the couch’s arm, keeping the teacher’s suitcase and the notes it carried in his grasp, “Here’s your stuff, Little Wing.”

Despite the concern still on her face, a tinge of amusement filled her voice as she repeated, “Little Wing?”

That tinge grew into a tiny smile at the way Jason’s wide eyes snapped to her. Dick let out a rolling sort of laugh and clapped his brother on the shoulder. The detective beamed at her, “God, I have _so many_ embarrassing childhood stories to tell you.”

Raven’s smile twitched, but her eyes glanced at the ceiling where her children’s rooms were. She cleared her throat, “I’d love to hear them but they’ll have to wait.”

The detective’s chin raised at the look in her eyes, his stare shooting from her to Jason. His jaw tensed, “She knows?”

“About his real name being Jason, about the strongarming to get the job, about the felonies…” Raven waved a hand through the air, crossing her arms over her chest right after. Her brows furrowed as she glared at the two men, “The only thing I don’t know is whether you’re an officer in Blüdhaven or Gotham.”

Dick’s sapphire gaze met his brother’s and Jason shrugged, muffling a yawn as he sat up, “Told you she was smart.”

The felon leaned back and watched as the two stared each other down, equally concerned and amused as his two favorite people tried to intimidate the other into speaking first. At the way Jason casually tossed an arm over the couch’s back Dick glanced at him, ran a tongue over his teeth and spoke, “Slade knows where they go to school.”

Raven jerked at the news and the detective soldiered on before she could react, “And he’s getting out of jail on Sunday.”

Jason found he was becoming familiar with that protective glint in her eyes, so he stood before she could dart towards the stairs, stepping in front of her, “Raven…”

The teacher poked him right in the sternum. Even with the dark circles under her eyes from a restless attempt at sleeping through the night, Raven was a formidable sight. Every inch of her was on edge and she kept her body angled _just so_ , making sure both men were in sight _and_ that she could make a dash for the kids’ rooms when she had the opportunity. 

Still, a hand curled into a fist and settled above her hip and she glared, “We’re leaving. Right now.”

Dick stood as well, “We can’t let you do that.”

Raven bristled, “And why the fuck not?”

He _knew_ what that angle to his brother’s lips meant and Jason couldn’t keep the regret off his face. The ex-criminal chanced putting a hand to her shoulder but she brushed it off, “Raven…”

Dick crossed his arms, “You’re Slade’s daughter-in-law. That means we need to put you in police protection immediately.”

He was being far too vague, “You are _not_ separating me from my kids.”

Although the mention of Slade made him the most serious that she’d seen, the detective at least allowed some sympathy to fill his face as he and Raven stared each other down. “If witness protection can’t work I can try to--”

“No. _Listen_ to me, Richard,” The mother settled a glare on him that could dissolve bones, “My children and I are staying together, no matter what.” 

A tremor went through her pointed finger, “We’d be better off running somewhere else, but if so much as _one_ of us goes into police or witness protection, all of us do.” She laid a hand on Jason’s shoulder and started to stalk to the staircase. She ran a tongue over her teeth, “We won’t _run_ , but they aren’t leaving the property without me with them, understood?”

The officer seemed placated enough at that, “I’ll see what I can do.”

\--

Dick and Jason were walking through the backyard, placing security cameras around the perimeter and checking where any hiding spots could be concealed. She knew that there were two of JCPD’s unmarked cars watching both entrance points from the street but for now all Raven could do was sigh. She languidly watched them from Melvin’s bedroom windowsill, her stomach twisting and turning this way and that. She didn’t notice the way her two oldest glanced at each other but with Junior already asleep, the quiet was only _slightly_ concerning. 

Jason turned to grab something and met her stare. Raven’s lips stayed in a line as he gave her a tepid smile. He obviously was somewhere in the middle compared to hers and his brother’s ideas on how they’d keep the little family safe, but he knew what he _had_ to do even if he didn’t quite like it. And while usually she would have appreciated his honesty in the situation gray eyes only slid to her kids. 

Her daughter bounded up to her and peeked over her shoulder. Bobby’s eyes bulged as she used him as a pillow in between her cheek and Raven’s shoulder, “They’re really busy.”

“They are.”

Raven sighed as Timmy clambered up in her lap and she ran a hand through the boy’s hair. Waiting until both were comfortable, the teacher bit the inside of her cheek and spoke the words she’d been trying to formulate since Dick had arrived, “Mr. Grayson and Mr. Todd are gonna stay the weekend.”

“Why?”

They spoke at the same time. It was a question that she had agonized over since before Junior had been born but even now, the mother didn’t know _what_ to say. “I,” Raven took in a deep breath. She _hated_ lying to her children, so she wouldn’t. Junior let out a babble and continued snoring beyond his pacifier and she looked between her two oldest, rolling her bottom lip between her teeth. Melvin shifted at the blatant worry on her mother’s face and Raven broke, “The bad men are coming back.”

Before either could react she wrapped them closer against her chest, “Mr. Grayson is a police officer, and he and Mr. Todd will make sure they can’t get to us.” Despite her words she worried for not the first time where’d they go if Jason and Dick slipped up, wondered just how close Slade could get. 

Timmy’s eyes were starting to mist over. He looked from the toys on the floor to his sister to his mother, the quiver making his voice go up a pitch, “But Momma--”

Raven kissed his temple. Her hands rubbed circles in Melvin’s back and the teacher sought to stay as calm as possible. The rasp in her voice was soothing, just like how she spoke during the calm moments between bedtime stories and tucking them in. “We’re not gonna run,” Her brows scrunched as she rethought her promise, “At least for now.”

“What we're going to do right now is stay calm.” She waited until they had properly snuggled in to run her hands through their hair. Raven pressed her lips to Timmy’s forehead, “Will you be a big boy when things get scary?” 

He nodded and she did the same to Melvin, “And you’ll be a big girl?” 

The blonde’s pigtails bounced as she nodded eagerly, “Always!”

Chuckling softly, Raven leaned further into the windowsill, silently watching as Dick told Jason _something_ and motioned to the driveway. A heavy sigh forced its way out of the mother’s lungs and she quietly announced, “We’ll be safe and stay _together_ , I promise.”

\--

The baby monitor was tuned into the sounds of the all three kids playing in Timmy’s room, tucked away and playing in the pillow fort that had become the indoors Tower. Raven kept her face down as she finished making their grilled cheeses, trying to keep a calm mind. The brothers were still outside checking and she had to suppress a jump at every _bang!_ and _thud!_ that occasionally filled the air. Thankfully, each noise was accompanied by a “Sorry, Raven!” so it wasn’t _too_ bad, but the threat of Slade was as suffocating as a wet blanket and she didn’t know how to find her way out. 

The back door opened. The mother held her breath before Jason strolled in and leaned against the fridge, his face unreadable. She didn’t bother looking up until he softly spoke, “Hey.” 

Raven raised her face and a brow, “What do you want?”

“I’m sorry.” 

A humorless chuckle slipped out. The music teacher plucked a cucumber from beside her and started washing it, her shoulders slack. A beat as she ran a tongue over her teeth, then, “You have nothing to apologize for.”

He let out a surprised, worried sound and she continued, “It was my fault. I shouldn’t have trusted you that quickly.”

“Raven…”

She pursed her lips as she peeled and started slicing the vegetable, “I’m glad that you’re not with _him_ , but you have to admit it was a pretty awful idea. Me trusting a stranger with the worst of my secrets. It was reckless.” Her brows furrowed as her fingers trembled, the extent of what telling Jason could’ve brought to them running through her again, “Worst than that. It was _negligent_. Putting my children in this situation.”

He didn’t deny her claim and Raven internally thanked him for it. Her chin tilted his way and the words slipped out into the tense silence, “I’m not _mad_ that you did it. Well I am, but just,” She ran her hands through her hair, “Just let us have some space, alright?”

The felon crossed his arms, no surprise but some sadness slipping over his face, “Are you talking about me or the kids?”

Raven blinked, knowing the answer but lying, “I’m not sure. But _please_ \--”

“I got it.”

“Thank you.” She held his gaze for another heartbeat then went back to preparing the kids’ lunch. Raven rolled her bottom lip between her teeth as she heard him go back out and the mother let her head drop, her fingers drumming on the cutting board.

\--

Despite Dick and Jason being no more than a backyard away, she hadn’t invited the two for dinner. Hell, she hadn’t even told them what or when she was cooking. She had left the last of the salmon from Jason’s first night (which, despite not even being 24 hours back, felt like an eternity ago) and all the fried rice and broccoli beef on the stove. Because despite her front, Raven couldn’t face them. 

A bit immature on her part, yes, but despite how quiet dinner was Raven knew that her kids were going to ask questions and her answers were ones that only they should hear. 

She moved about Melvin’s bedroom as she got them ready for bed, tucking a baby monitor in between the trinkets on the girl’s nightstand, one perched against the side of Junior’s crib, one at the door and one at the window. As Raven helped Timmy get his footie pajamas on he stole a glance to his sister over her shoulder. 

Melvin frowned as she looked around her room, “Why do they need to sleep in _my_ room?” 

Raven bit the inside of her cheek and decided that some bluntness may be necessary, “Because Junior’s is too small and the bad men can climb in through the ledge outside Timmy’s window.” 

“But what about Mr. Todd?” 

“He and Officer Grayson aren’t gonna let them get anywhere close to us,” The mother soothed, softly urging the boy into his sister’s bed. “But we don’t have to tempt fate, now do we?”

She waved Melvin over and set about taking out the girl’s pigtails. Sitting with her back against the bedstand, Raven rested an elbow on the pillow and waited for her daughter to get situated in her lap. Junior cooed as he crawled to her feet and Timmy rested on her arm as Raven grabbed the brush. 

The little family sunk into a quiet sort of reverie as Raven hummed a wordless tune as she untangled the blonde’s long strands, and while Teether was earning his nickname as he munched on the ends of his mother’s pants Melvin was uneasy. She squeezed Bobby tight to her chest and leaned further back into Raven, “Momma?”

Raven parted her hair, “Mmhmm?”

Melvin sighed happily at the rhythmic brushing, her words quiet, “Are we gonna have to leave again?” 

Timmy shifted at her question. Raven kissed the back of her daughter’s head, “I really hope not, but I’m not sure.” Melvin’s lips pursed and her mother tilted her head until she was staring into her daughter’s eyes. The mother was serious as she emphasized, “But Officer Grayson knows how to catch bad guys, Mr. Todd is going to be looking over everything and the three of us are never let anything bad happen.” 

She ran a hand through Melvin’s hair, “I know that it isn’t the most convincing thing to say, but it’s a _promise_ , Darling. You just have to trust that they-- that we know what we’re doing.”

Raven turned her head, tenderly nudging Timmy’s forehead with her nose, “That also goes for you, Timmy.” The toddler was half asleep on her calves and the mother sighed, “And Junior too.” Gray eyes went to the clock on the wall and she shifted to pull Melvin in her arms. Her youngest babbled as she stood and picked him up as well. 

Putting Teether near their feet, Raven tucked Melvin and Timmy in. She fluffed up the pillows behind them and made sure Bobby and the blankie were in their grasp. Smiling, Raven plucked Teether from their feet and strolled to his crib, settling him down and popping a stuffed animal in his arms. Luckily, the baby hadn’t been fussing too much from teething pain, so she merely bent down to peck his forehead and cover him with the blanket.

Turning the mobile on, the teacher checked that the slow spinning wasn’t going to interfere with the baby monitor’s reception. Satisfied, she retucked the blankets under Timmy’s feet and kissed his forehead once, “Now try to get some sleep. I’ll make us waffles for breakfast…?” 

She pecked Melvin’s temple as the girl grinned, humming softly as her daughter cried out “Syrup!” at the same time Timmy cooed out “Jam!”

The mother nodded at their suggestions. Discreetly checking that all four baby monitors were up and running, Raven went around the room to kiss each of their foreheads once more, murmuring a quiet “Goodnight, I love you” to all three. She quietly slunk out of Melvin’s crowded room, taking care not to step on any toys as she went. The door shut with a light _click!_ and she sighed, her forehead meeting the door. 

The teacher breathed a few times then stood up straight again; she’d be better off agonizing over the monitors in bed, not huddled outside of their door. 

She went to turn and Jason was there. 

“Jason!” Raven yelped out his name and jumped back, a hiss erupting out of her as she roughly ran into the doorknob. 

He let out a sympathetic hiss at how _loud_ the collision was, moving to let her balance on his arm. Raven’s glare wasn’t as intense as before and he cleared his throat, “I was wondering if we could talk.” Olive eyes glanced to her hand pressed to her back, “I could get an icepack if you’d like?” 

Raven opened her mouth as if to speak and froze at the sound of the bedsprings, turning to the door and quietly peeking her head in. She met her daughter’s panicked gaze and smiled, mouthing a reassuring “It’s okay” to the girl. Melvin immediately calmed down at knowing nothing was wrong and her mother blew her two kisses. She caught them both, pressing one to her cheek and the other to Bobby’s snout. Her blue eyes squeezed shut and the first grader relaxed, curling further up in her Spiderman sheets. 

Raven let out a breath she didn’t realize she was holding and closed the door again, gnawing on the inside of her cheek as she met Jason’s stare. She motioned for him to follow her and stalked to her room, annoyed that he was there and relieved at seeing nothing troubling on the security feed. 

The teacher sat on the edge of her bed, keeping the screen in view. The monitors picked up the sound of Melvin tossing and turning, Teether’s quiet snoring, and even the way Timmy faintly mumbled out nonsense in his sleep. She nodded to herself once then sighed, her face rising to meet his gaze, “What do you want?”

He didn’t say anything for a long moment, taking in the stoicism on her face and the cracks of hurt in her eyes. Jason gave her a halfhearted smile, “I’m sorry.”

She raised a brow, “You said that already.”

“Well, I wanted to apologize again. I know you trusted me--” Raven’s nose scrunched up “--and I know that not letting you know about Slade earlier was wrong but I _am_ sorry.” Jason looked truly remorseful and she crossed her arms, fidgeting in place. He opened his mouth as if to say something else, but the look in her eyes made him reconsider. They simply stared at each other in silence, her eyes flicking from him to the screen and back. 

The mother sucked on her teeth and let her shoulders go slack, her nails digging into the crook of her arm. Gray eyes searched his face, confused at the patience she saw there and overwhelmed at the passion. He may have been worried sick that she knew about his past, but he was obviously far more concerned about what she thought; it was a nice feeling to know she’d made such an impression in such a small amount of time. Raven fought back a smile; she didn’t think she could lie to him. 

Raven narrowed her eyes and sighed, knowing that she _couldn’t_ lie to him. The words came out soft, not quite begrudging but not as tender as they could have been, “I still trust you.”

Jason’s head tilted to the side. At the pure surprise that peeked through the casual facade, she scooted over and patted the end of her bed. Raven pulled her knees up to her chest, drumming her fingertips on her calves as she stared at the CCTV again. She leaned with the dip as Jason sat next to her, her temple resting against his shoulder. He looked at the top of her head and the words spilled out before she could really think them over, “I shouldn’t trust you anymore, but I do.” 

Her eyes squeezed shut, “I don’t know if it’s because of the kids and how much they _like_ you, or that you’re actually a good teacher, or that you didn’t lie when I first confronted you, but I _do_ trust you.” 

Jason winced as she admitted, “I don’t want to.”

Still, a tiny smile made his lips twitch, “I’m glad that you do.” 

She raised her head from his arm to stare at him. Raven watched as his gaze flicked from her eyes to her lips to her fingers rubbing the tanline where her ring used to sit. Awkwardly clearing his throat, the ex-criminal had to admit, “I… care about you. And the kids too. I know we haven’t known each other _long_ , but I don’t want to lose your four this quickly.”

Raven blinked at his answer and what it could mean going forward, but surged on to a topic that she had to understand first. The mother drummed her fingertips on her palm, trying to keep her expectations down as she asked, “When did you find out?”

He didn’t need to see her face to know she meant Slade; sighing, he leaned his weight back on his palms, “Not too long ago, actually. Dick made sure I wasn’t _as_ blindsided as you.” 

The lines of her forehead lessened as the answer came to her, “It was after the field trip, wasn’t it?” Her eyes ran over his face, “You were on the phone as soon as the bus parked and you looked pissed heading out.”

Jason slowly nodded. He bit back a smile at how well she could read him but all that came out was a quiet, “Yeah.” 

That got him a hum. Raven ran a tongue over her teeth and moved her sights back to the cameras outside of Melvin’s room. She rolled her lower lip between her teeth, her words soft, “I wish you would’ve told me.”

A huff of air shot out of the tall man, then, “So do I.”

“Pfft,” This time it was Raven’s turn to snort as she stared up at him again. Her chin rested on the end of his shoulder and her eyes began tracing a scar on his chin. “That would’ve made your job harder when we ran.” 

Jason ran a hand through his hair and she noted a few barely graying strands right near his temple, the temporary dye already starting to fade. She raised a brow as she noted that was the only gray patch but her musings were interrupted with his simple, “Better than you basically hating me.”

Raven jerked at that, vehemently shaking her head, “No. I hate _Slade_ , this is just…” She waved in the air between them, a part of her softening and a part of her firm in the validity of her emotions, “Annoyance, I suppose. Skepticism and distrust and some hurt, but nothing anywhere near _hate_.”

She rolled her jaw, “I know you were only trying to do what’s best for them.”

“Them _and you_ ,” Jason stressed. 

Finally, that little half-smile came back to the teacher’s face. “All of us, then.”

“Hey,” Jason leisurely ran a thumb over her jaw as their foreheads met, his movements casual. He seemed to be acting as if they’d have the chance to be like this a million times over rather than it being so new. The felon grinned and leaned in until their noses brushed, “You and the kids’ll be fine.”

She was grateful for his insistence in their safety, but her mind was moving to other, more inconceivable places. The mother raised her face and let her lashes flutter shut, muttering out, “Right…” 

“And they’ll stay safe.”

“Okay,” Raven’s voice was simply a breath in the space between them. She pressed closer, surprised at the impatience that filled her own stomach. “I’ll trust you on this.”

Jason’s lips parted to say something else and the anticipation overcame her; restless, she surged forward and pressed her lips to his. He immediately reacted in kind, his hands parting as one tangled in her hair and the other palmed the curve of her hip. 

This was bad. He was biased and she was close to getting murdered within the week, they shouldn’t be acting like horny teenagers instead of the adults they needed to be. Jason pulled away half a breath, “Raven--”

Her hands tightened in his hair and she pulled him closer, impatiently smothering the sides of his jaw with kisses, “Shut up.” Jason let out a panting sort of laugh, tugged her into his lap and hummed as she kissed him again.

\--

Raven sighed as she woke up to the feel of Jason’s chest under her cheek and the unfamiliar coolness of her blankets. With the blinds being shut until Slade was apprehended, she missed the sound of the birds’ morning songs and the feel of the sun’s earliest rays heating up her bed.  
But her bed wasn’t _too_ cold, not with him here with her. 

The teacher’s thoughts went blank as Jason pulled her closer and let his lips brush to her temple, “Hey.”

She let out a quiet sigh as he traced the edge of her widow’s peak. The tiniest flush threatened her cheeks as she remembered what had occured between them not six hours prior and Raven cleared her throat, knowing it did nothing for her usual rasp, “Morning.”

They didn’t speak for a long while, simply listening to the sound of Dick going through the kitchen and starting the coffee. Gray eyes flicked to the alarm clock, her shoulders relaxing when she saw they still had fifteen minutes until they absolutely had to get up. A little sound slipped out of her when Jason nudged her face up. He let their foreheads rest together, his forced optimism aided by the genuine snicker that came out when their noses crashed into each other. His hands ran through her hair again, some strands catching on his callouses. 

Most of her weight still on his chest, Raven rose with the deep breath he took. Olive eyes were hopeful and cautious as they met hers, “It’ll be fine.”

The teacher nodded stiffly, repeating his words from the previous night, “And my kids’ll stay safe.” 

They simply stared at each other for a long moment, letting her words linger in the space between them. Raven’s tongue darted out to wet her lips and Jason squeezed her closer. His fingers settled just above the groove in the small of her back, mindlessly rubbing at the bruise that was surely forming, “You ready for this?”

“No.” Her lips formed that half-smile again, “Are you?”

A sad, confident grin. “Nope.”

\--

Raven had just barely kept her kids in line as they drove to school Monday morning, her heart in her stomach and her stomach in her throat. She kept glancing in her rearview mirror at Dick and Jason driving behind her and had to consciously remember to loosen her white-knuckled grip on the steering wheel. A slow, long breath left her lungs as she parked in her usual spot and the mother took a moment to close her eyes and simply breath. Melvin wriggled in her carseat and Timmy tossed his head back in a yawn. 

Gray eyes met Jason’s through her side mirror and she flushed, turning in her seat to beam at her children, “Ready for school?”

She had stayed near them as long as she could, leaving Teether at the daycare at the last possible minute and meeting Jason outside her class. The kindergarten teacher aimed a thumb towards his class, “Dick’s in there now. He’ll stay with me til lunch then bounce between Mel’s and Junior’s classrooms until school’s out.”

Her shoulders relaxed at the idea, “Okay, that’s pretty good.” 

The felon rested against the wall and touched her shoulder, his eyes warm and full of promise, “Safe and fine, remember?”

She stiffly nodded, her tension keeping the smile from curling her lips, “You better be right about this, Jason.” Raven noted how some of her students peeked through the window to watch them talk. Before she could warn him Jason leaned down to peck her cheek and practically _sauntered_ back to his own class. 

He winked at her from over his shoulder at the “Oooooh!” that her class giggled out and she rolled her eyes, spinning to enter room 8 just seconds before the final bell rand. The rasp of her voice was a bit lighter than usual as she called out, “Okay, okay! Fun’s fun but everyone in their seats!”

Back in the kindergarten class, Dick had scratched Sparky the Second behind his ears as he grinned down at his brother’s class. Jason in teacher-mode was quite a sight and the detective was reveling in the sight. Clapping once, the teacher introduced, “Everyone, this is Officer Grayson.”

Dick _knew_ he shouldn’t, but he couldn’t pass up the opportunity. He clapped Jason on the shoulder, “I’m Mr. Todd’s big brother!”

Timmy wasn’t as shocked as his classmates’ but he giggled with the rest of them. Jason shrugged off the detective’s hand and whistled for Sparky to come to him. Deciding to keep things light before he started the actual schoolwork, the teacher motioned for Dick to hand him the box of dog biscuits, “How about some tricks before counting practice?”

Sparky bounced around at the rustle of food and the kids perked up at the thought of bringing out the dog toys. Dick shied away to the corner of the room as his radio gave a burst of static, his voice lowly murmuring out some police chatter. Jason watched him for just a second then went back to teaching. 

Getting the class pet to balance the biscuits on the mutt’s snout was followed seamlessly with counting practice and Jason let himself relax as lunchtime neared. Dick squinted as his brother’s pet started sniffing the air. His tail abruptly drooped down and Sparky put his head in his paws as a shrill ring filled the air, his whining accompanied with the kindergartners gasps of surprise. Lian pouted as she pressed her palms to her ears, her face scrunching with the others as they smelled the fumes.

Jason squared his jaw and met Dick’s gaze as he rushed to the door. Smoke and the sound of opening doors filled the air, the undercurrent of worried murmurings mingling with the heat from wherever the fire was burning. The detective narrowed his eyes at the scene and put a hand on his concealed gun. He closed the door and raised his chin to the teacher; sapphire eyes were hard as he mouthed ‘Did you bring your gun?’ over the kids’ head. At Jason’s nod, Blüdhaven’s finest spoke, “It’s not a drill, the hall’s filled with smoke.”

The brothers shared a worried look and Jason started rounding up the kids while Dick radioed in to the units he had stationed around the schoolblock. “Okay, everyone!” Jason clapped once and put on a brave face for the kindergartners, “There’s gonna be smoke and it might get a bit hard to see but it’s just like any fire drill; now everyone stay with your buddy and let’s get outside!”

Chaos was reigning the hallways as the kindergarten class was ushered out. Jason stayed in front, helping some of the older kids stay on their feet as they shuffled through the crowd. Under the muffled screaming, Sparky barked as he trotted as far up ahead as the teacher’s hold on his leash would allow. The tiles squeaked under the multitudes of sneakers, the squeaks giving way to squishes as the sprinklers started. 

Stagnant water rained down on them and Jason huffed as he urged his class to evacuate faster. A firefighter rushed forward, knocking his shoulder as he rushed towards the stairwell. Jason paid him no mind until an all-too familiar scream sounded behind him.

With a parade of kindergartners underfoot the fake firefighter easily dodged Dick’s lunge and took off, Timmy roughly pinned under his arm. Jason started for him but his brother regained his balance and wrenched his shoulder, “Don’t!”

The detective put his palm on his holster, his face serious and his jaw tense, “I’ll go find Timmy. You get the kids out,” Dick commanded. 

Jason hesitated for half a second, his eyes glancing to the stairwell as he prepared to take off again, but his brother’s stern “ _Now!_ ” forced him into action. 

He began leading his class again, his brows furrowing as he watched Dick take out his gun and begin his careful climb up the stairs. Jason grabbed one of the twin’s hand since Timmy wasn’t there anymore, his height a beacon for all the kids as he called out, “C’mon, all of you! We need to get outside!” 

As they passed one of the flooding water fountains Lian tripped under the frantic steps of one of the third graders. Jason picked her up and handed the twin off to her fire drill buddy, knowing that she was going to panic with her scraped knee. But, somehow, he was able to shepherd all of them to the school’s front steps. 

Coughing, he set Lian down as he counted his students, his shoulders not quite relaxing as all but one of them stumbled out of the building. He scooted aside to line them all up and get them some blankets, scanning the crowd for any signs of where he could sneak back in. Principal Beecher came up to help the kindergartners, easily calming down some of the youngest of the school’s wards. 

His stomach dropped at the “Jason!” that was shouted to his back. He turned, olive eyes as wide and frantic as Raven’s as she scanned the line. His hands came to cover hers when she touched his arm, “Dick’s trying to find him--”

Her pupils were blown wide, “Melvin’s missing too!”

Jason ran a tongue over his teeth and squeezed her hands. He took a deep breath as he scanned the area again, “Okay. There’s firefighters on the playground and at the library and JCPD’s all around the block. Dick’s a great cop, Rae. Let’s get Junior first and we’ll find them both, okay?”

Her face hardened and she nodded, determined and protective and _scared_ , “Okay.”

\--

Through the chaos of the beginnings of the school’s fire evacuation, Slade easily slunk through the stairwells. He glanced at his watch and nodded to himself, right on time. 

Easily slipping from under the frantic daycare teachers’ noses, he crouched down in the corner. Slade let out a curious hum as he picked up his youngest grandchild. Junior coughed at the faint traces of smoke clinging to his shoulders, but the kingpin paid him no mind. His emotions soared as he took in the child’s features; what with the nose and the chin and the shock of blonde hair that was just beginning to curl, the little toddler looked just like his Joey… 

That tenderness gave way to _rage_ at the ridge of the toddler’s brow and the shape of his lips. Slade wasn’t surprised that Joseph Jr. had some of his mother’s face but the sight viciously reminded him of how he had been kept from his grandchildren by _her_.

The one-eyed man re-adjusted the eyepatch on his face. He stroked the baby’s chin and easily pushed the earplugs in. Hopefully neither of his men were incompetent enough to get held up in the smoke-filled halls; all he needed was to get his grandchildren in the car and kill the mistake that his son married, then he’d be free to take them back to Stockholm. A wicked grin split his lips at the thought. 

Cradling Junior to his chest, Slade brandished his gun at his side and started for the door. He kept his pistol pressed against his side as a few children and a teacher scampered past towards the emergency exits and slunk into the stairwell, his teeth gnashing together when he spotted no sign of either henchmen, Melvin, or Timmy. 

On the other side of the building Timmy struggled under the false-firefighter’s grip as the man yanked them into the emergency staircase, the boy’s high-pitched screams muffled by the glove over his mouth. Shoving the bulky hat off his head, Slade’s henchman let out an irritated groan when the blond wouldn’t stop screaming, “Jeez, kid! Shut up!”

He let out an annoyed “Mother _fucker!_ ” when Dick burst into the stairwell behind him. Timmy jerked in his grasp and let out another scream through the gap in his fingers. The detective’s body was tense as he considered his options, the adrenaline spiking even more when he didn’t spot any sign of a gun on the kidnapper’s person. 

“Let’s take it easy now,” Dick spoke, his words slow and clear as he slid his handgun back in its holster. He raised his hands in the air, sapphire eyes immediately noticing as the henchman shuffled half a step back. 

Timmy squirmed even harder as the pretend firefighter moved to shuffle back some more and Dick took the opportunity as he saw it. The detective rushed forward with all the grace of a dancer and all the poise of a wrestler, aiming for the arm that wasn’t holding the kindergartner. The henchman stumbled as a punch was landed on his face and Timmy writhed out of his hold, scampering up and over Dick’s shoulders as the two men grappled. 

Although grapple wasn’t the right word, given how quick the detective had the faux-fireman pinned with a knee to his lower back and handcuffed. Timmy stayed at his place at the floor’s highest stair, his lips in a shaky smile as he hugged the railing. Before Dick could rise to try to console him a scream sounded from the floor above. 

Melvin punched at her abductor with one hand, continuing to kick and bite whatever she could. Her teeth sunk into his wrist and he dropped her with a shout. The blonde slipped in the sprinkler system’s water and tried to run but she wasn’t fast enough and he pulled her back, spinning her like a sack of potatoes as he rushed into the stairwell before anyone could spot him. Melvin let out a gasp as Bobby slipped from her grip and fell down a flight of the stairs, her choked up sob muffled by the henchman’s growl as he caught sight of the detective and his downed comrade. 

She looked up to where his gaze landed, sapphire eyes widening as she caught sight of her brother scampering away to safety, “TIMMY!”

The boy stumbled as he slid through the doorframe, poking his head back out to frantically scream at her, “MEL!”

Her captor snapped his head to glare at the boy and he started for the staircase. Dick shoved him from behind, putting an elbow to his kidneys and swiping an arm out to catch Melvin before she toppled. 

Before any fight could start Dick pushed her towards the exit, shouting at her back, “Run!”

Cut off from getting up to the second floor where her brother hid, Melvin took off in the opposite direction. As the door slowly slid shut behind her the ear-splitting _boom!_ of a gun going off sounded behind her; the girl didn’t dare look back, even as the thuds of a scuffle and Dick’s irate “Stay on the ground!” floated through the air. Melvin whimpered as she snuck towards the smokeless route to the auditorium, slipping into the locker rooms. Her navy eyes went wide at the sight of her brother’s teacher but before she could call to him her mother screamed, “Watch out!”

The blonde stiffened as some old man aimed a gun at Mr. Todd and she bolted again, slipping along the actual lockers instead of the front of the showers that they stared each other down in. 

Slade rolled his jaw, annoyed as Raven tilted back and forth on her heels. He called her move before she could even _begin_ to try to plan it out, “Don’t, Raven. I know you’re foolish but you know I won’t hesitate.”

Her voice was a growl, “Let go of my son!”

“He’s _my_ grandson,” Slade’s voice was steely but he didn’t look away from Jason, considering his options. Killing them both would be _so easy_ but getting more information was always a plus. He smirked, the movement more a snarl behind the barrel of the gun. 

“How about we all stay calm,” Jason murmured. He kept his hands up and away from his belt, just as the criminal commanded. “You’re holding a _toddler_ , Wilson… no need to be rash.”

Slade smirked and tilted Teether in his arms, showcasing the yellow headphones that wrapped around the back of his head. Raven’s face scrunched up in worry and he goaded her, “I won’t put my family’s health on the line. You should know that.”

A scoff erupted into the air as the mother thought over her options; Slade had yet to point the gun away from Jason but she knew his reflexes far surpassed hers. Her gray eyes stared him down, “You didn’t for Joey. Or even Grant.”

Jason shifted as Slade’s finger tightened on the trigger. The kingpin stoically spoke, “That is _not_ the topic at hand, Raven.” Still, his jaw ticked at her mention. He practically _grunted_ his next command, “Now tell me where Melvin and Timothy are so we can leave.” 

Raven took a step forward, her hands in fists at her sides, “You’ll have to kill me first.”

Jason blurted out, “No one has to die.” He tried to spot whether or not the fire was close enough that any firefighters or police could find them before the gunfire started, but he wasn’t going to waste his hope. Instead, the felon held his hands up higher and leaned forward. He nudged Raven away from his person and the target on his chest, “No one has to get shot either.”

Melvin snuck towards the laundry carts and nearly tripped on her loosely tied sneakers. Loudly bumping into the lockers she didn’t notice as a water bottle dropped, it’s _thud!_ on the tile deafening in the quiet negotiation. Jason jolted at the sound and Raven ducked to the side, thinking it was a bullet. 

Tense, the ex-criminal’s stomach twitched, reminding him of the handgun along his belt. He chanced taking half a step forward; Slade didn’t hesitate to lower his gun’s aim. A shot blew through the air and Jason let out a grunt as he fell to the ground. 

Teether whined at the vibrating pain of being so close to a firing gun and spat up all over his grandfather’s arm. Slade sneered at the mess and moved his grandson to his side, his glare never leaving Jason’s face. He aimed at the felon’s head and took a step forward before pulling the trigger, stumbling as his step slipped in the spit-up on the floor. 

The bullet went high and Jason quickly grabbed his gun, aiming low as he shot the crime lord in the thigh. Slade hissed and let Junior drop to the ground, his third shot interrupted by the football team’s laundry cart slamming into his non-bulletholed thigh. 

Melvin cried out as her grandfather stumbled to keep him balance, “Leave Mr. Todd alone!” 

His pupils were wide through the pain as he stared at his granddaughter, “Melvin?” With baby barf on one hand and his blood on the other, the gun started to slip from his grasp, but Slade didn’t care. Melvin had Joey’s nose and his eyes, but that confidence…

His chest heaved at how similar she looked to Rose and Slade moved to grab her despite the steady flow of blood spewing from his leg. Gasping, Raven scrambled to pick Teether up and yank Melvin back by her collar before he could get any closer. Slade’s gun fell as he swiped at her. The mother saw an opportunity and kicked his weapon towards the corner, using all her momentum to shove her daughter until she was shielded by the lockers. The blonde put her fingers in her ears. 

Still holding his stomach, Jason saw a chance and screamed at the other teacher, “Stay down!” Clambering from her feet to her knees Raven shielded Junior with her body as the kindergarten teacher let off another shot. This one hit Slade in the upper chest, not an inch from his right armpit. 

The ring of the gunshot blasted out around the schoolblock as the previous three had; Dick saw the flash of the muzzle and sprinted in the direction of the locker room, radioing in for back-up as he went. The flash also briefly blinded the two men and made Raven’s ears ring from the noise. Slade struggled to stay standing and growled as he lost sight of wherever his ex daughter-in-law scurried to; Melvin and Junior were nowhere that he could spot and he could only hope that his men weren’t so imcompetent to fail to get Timmy. 

Without his gun Raven was confident enough to run to Jason as Slade sneered at his injury, just barely avoiding his thrown elbow to her sternum as he hobbled past. She started to relax at the sound of the rest of the police units swarming nearby and the fact that the one-eyed man was walking opposite from where her children were. Raven shook her head in a futile attempt to clear the ringing but still rushed to Jason’s side, dropping to her knees and putting as much pressure as she could on his stomach. 

She knew it was dangerous to have her back to Slade but with the way her oldest and youngest were staring at her from underneath one of the towel-covered benches, she felt calm enough that Melvin would warn her. 

With the two adults distracted Slade shook his head and smoothly ducked out of Grayson’s view as he rushed into the locker rooms. The criminal hobbled his way through the hallways and out to where his getaway car was, frustrated beyond words at the sight of his battered henchmen in cuffs on the school’s steps. He started the Timmy-less car and drove off as calmly and safely as he could to not draw any suspicion.

The throbbing in his leg burned when he pushed the pedal and his chest pulsated with heat as he tried to keep pressure on the gunshot wound, but it was no matter. Slade rolled his jaw and simply thought as he headed towards the freeway, his mind steady. In terms of prevention JCPD had proved to somehow be even sloppier than Gotham, Blüdhaven, and Stockholm’s police forces combined; he’d come back for his grandchildren later. 

His blue eye watched as two ambulances and another firetruck soared down the streets he just left, obviously headed towards the black smoke-cloud that was once Jump Elementary’s library. Slade growled as he had to relent to his injuries’ severity, following the signs to the hospital. His blood gushed past the handkerchief and his fingers, staining the leather far past the point that he’d like it to. 

Just a minor setback, the kingpin mused to himself. Detective Grayson’s brother was a new player and Raven wasn’t _as_ weak as he expected her to be, but that was of little consequence. 

He’d get them next time.

\--

Dick crouched next to his brother’s head as Raven leaned practically her whole body weight on his wound. He checked that Jason wasn’t concussed and worked to keep his neck stable, just in case. As he pulled out his radio and urged an EMT crew he tried to take over, but Raven didn’t let him. 

“I don’t feel an exit hole,” She gritted out to the detective. “I don’t think I should let go.”

“I left Timmy’s with the cruisers in front of the school,” Dick tilted his head towards the bench when the other two Roths sat, “Once help arrives you need to get them out of here and have them checked for injuries, alright?”

Raven nodded, relieved that Melvin was covering her eyes with one hand and Junior’s eyes with the other. She caught Jason’s half-focused gaze, her heart beating out of her chest, “Right.”

Her shoulders tensed as footsteps thundered into the locker room and thudded on the tile, the air leaving her lungs as a paramedic knelt down next to her and easily took over. Rubbing the blood -- _Jason’s_ blood-- off on her pants, she shakily got to her feet and staggered through the increasingly filling room to get to her kids. 

She crouched down next to the towels, a whimpering laugh shooting out of her as Melvin jumped into her arms. Raven hugged her daughter tight and kissed her forehead over and over, one hand stretching forward to bring Junior up into their embrace. The teacher let out another breathless laugh as she lifted them up in her arms and stood. 

She didn’t hear as Dick asked an officer to escort her safely to the front of the school but she appreciated the gesture. It was wonderful to have someone whose steps she could mindlessly follow as they went around the school, her gaze only leaving her children when she glanced towards the still smouldering sides of the school’s westernmost end. 

Sniffling from the ash and the dwindling spike of adrenaline, Melvin started wriggling in her mother’s arms as she caught sight of her brother’s cape, “Timmy!” 

Raven set her down and ran a few strides behind her, tears finally slipping over as Melvin all but tackled her brother in a hug. The teacher fell to her knees and wrapped them all up at once, giggling with her kids as they could finally cry now that they were safe. A shadow fell over them and Raven looked up as one of the uniformed officers questioned, “Mrs. Roth?”

The man handed her Bobby, slightly singed and, knowing how Slade operated, probably in desperate need of a hydrogen peroxide bath, “We found this in the hallway.”

Navy eyes went wide as Melvin let out a screech and shot forward to hug his leg, “Thankyouthankyouthankyou!”

He smiled as the blonde squeezed Bobby in between her chest and his leg and Raven rubbed her sons backs’, wiping her cheeks as she nodded at him, “Thank you, Officer. And Mel, let him go.”

Before he could turn away the teacher had to ask, “Do you have any information on Mr. Todd? He and the paramedics haven’t come out of the locker room yet.”

He gave her a sympathetic look, “I’m not sure ma’am, but when they come out it’ll be through the front. The whole playground and back lot is still scorching.”

Her brows furrowed. Timmy curled tighter into her, sniffling against her neck. She pecked his forehead once and asked, “Was anyone hurt?”

“A few minor burns as far as we know right now. But just hang tight, alright?”

She nodded and murmured another “Thanks” as he jogged towards an approaching cruiser. A few other officers joined him in clearing a path for the ambulance and Raven watched them, spreading her shoulders a bit wider so Melvin could snuggle back in. A paramedic’s back stepped out of the front doors and Raven’s heart fell to her stomach at the stretcher. 

Jason sighed through his teeth as the EMTs wheeled him towards the ambulance, squeezing the stretcher’s fabric as a paramedic kept pressure to the bullet hole to his stomach. Through the oxygen mask over his face and the ash that still clung to his lashes he could barely make out his surroundings but he felt as some of his students rushed to the stretcher, Principal Beecher just barely keeping them from trying to hang onto him. He caught sight of Raven in the crowd, Junior and Melvin in each blanketed arm and her face full of concern and fear as Timmy mingled in the throng of his sniffling classmates. But then the paramedics were shutting the door and the jolt of the ambulance taking off made him hiss, spots filling his vision. 

He tried to think of Raven, of Dick, of whether the rooms nearest the flames were scheduled to be occupied and whether or not anyone was hurt. However the pain was proving to be too much and Jason felt his consciousness slipping. The _beep! beep! beep!_ of the monitor was a strainer through the adrenaline-filled mush that was his brain and his eyes rolled back. 

His ears rang with the sound of one of the EMTs yelling at him to stay awake, then everything went black. 

\--

She had been stonewalled at every turn. 

On the police front, Jason had simply vanished. JCPD had gone through his motel and taken any sign of him and Raven didn’t even know if he was _alive_ or not. She hoped and prayed and argued with herself that he _had_ to be, but with a gunshot in such a vital area… she just didn’t know.

In school, Principal Beecher hadn’t found out any much more than she had. Apparently Gotham’s commissioner called to inform her that their mission was over and that the previous kindergarten teacher was free to return, but nothing on the now legally ex-felon. 

At home, she hadn’t known _what_ to tell her kids. Junior was still young enough that as long as his ears were fine (and the doctors said that all of the kids’ ears weren’t damaged, thank every deity imaginable for _that_ ) he’d probably forget the whole experience, but Melvin and Timmy were constantly coming to her. Asking, wondering, sniffling about how much they missed Mr. Todd and why wasn’t he back at school yet? 

At first, she’d told them to wait a few weeks until Christmastime. But as a day turned into a week and a week into a fortnight and a fortnight into a month, her heart ached as she wondered whether or not she should be mourning. Raven had even taken to seeing if she could stalk any of Officer Grayson’s social media, but all of his were set to private. 

No news, nothing. 

Then, as the last dwindling heat of autumn gave way to the cool winds that ushered in winter, she’d parked to the sight of Sparky’s leash tied around the oak tree’s trunk. The leash was brand new and tied with a bunny-ears instead of the usual sailor’s knot that Jason was fond of, but with the way Beecher was contentedly sipping her coffee as she stepped in to check her mail Raven allowed herself to _hope_.

She uncapped her thermos and added some of the hot water. Gray eyes flicked to the principal and Raven chanced to ask, “Any news?”

“His brother emailed me, says he’s alive and healing.” Brown eyes were relieved and compassionate as Raven nearly buckled at the news. Karen nodded and reached over to squeeze the teacher’s hand, “I _know_. Figured we might as well break the news to the kids once class starts, right?”

“Yeah,” Raven forced a smile onto her face. Elated as she was that Jason was okay, he’d yet to call…. 

Shaking her head, the teacher hid her thoughts with another sip of tea, “That’d be best.”

\--

Her class had been ecstatic to find out Mr. Todd was okay, and if the brief screaming that echoed through the school’s walls meant anything the rest of Jump City Elementary shared the sentiment. They’d settled down a bit when she told them they didn’t know if or when he’d be back and she finally got them to prepare for the next lesson by promising to get a card that they all could sign for him. 

It was a much needed routine in the face of such a revelation, one that Raven clung to as desperately as her realism would allow. Correcting any mistakes in timing and reteaching how to properly scale up notes kept her from agonizing about _why_ Dick was just now reaching out, or why Jason hadn’t contacted her himself, or even if she’d ever see either of them again. The teacher shook her head to clear her thoughts and she strolled around the classroom, demonstrating to the fifth-graders the correct way to hold their instruments. 

Halfway through flipping through the bound sheet music for the winter play, she heard a bark. 

The book nearly toppled out of her hand as the screaming of the kindergarten class immediately followed. Snapping her face to the window so fast she nearly gave herself whiplash, Raven mumbled a quick “Excuse me, class” and rushed out the door. Part of the teacher recognized how her students rushed to peek out the window as she practically _burst_ into room 7 like the Koolaid man, but she paid them no mind. She didn’t even pay the kindergartners any thought. 

Jason was practically smothered among them and he turned to her, his face softening. His stubble was shaved clean, that odd patch of gray was no longer dyed black to match the rest of his hair, and he had a support belt around his midsection, right where he had gotten shot. The black peeked out past his blazer, as soft and scar-laden at he was, but it was _him_. 

“Hey,” Jason practically breathed out the word, stunned at seeing her again. 

She took a shaky step forward; at the look on his mother’s face Timmy stuck out his tongue and the rest of his classmates squealed and covered their eyes. A giggling rumble of “They’re gonna kiiiiiiiiss” filled the air and Jason laughed, catching Raven as she all but vaulted herself into his arms. 

Her hands cupped his jaw and an embarrassing sound nearly slipped out as she _finally_ got to kiss him again. The teachers spun in a half circle as they embraced, nearly tripping over the kids around them. 

They parted after far too brief of a time, chuckling against each others mouth at the horrified cry that filled the air. “ _Eeeeeewwww!!!_ ”


End file.
